Jacob Spark and the Quest to End All Quests
by dwighthowardmakesitrain
Summary: I know you can't believe it, but I'M GOING TO FINISH IT PEOPLE! Anyway this is a book 5 fic about Percy and his friends going on the final quest to defeat Kronos and save the Hunters with a new son of Zues. Percabeth and Rachel/OC. Please review!
1. I Play Hide and Go Seek With A Monster

Hey guys Hey guys. This is my story for PJO Book 5. Go easy on the flames, this is my first fic. If I get good reviews, I'll keep writing it. Enjoy!

**I do not own PJO. If I did, I definitely wouldn't be writing this.**

Chapter One-

The hellhound was catching up to me. I could hear its huge feet pounding behind me and smell its panting breath that stank of raw meat. It was roughly the size of a Suburban, and apparently extremely hungry. It had been chasing me for almost four blocks now. If I could just have two seconds, I could pull out Riptide and slash it to bits. But with it hot on my tail like this, it was impossible. If I even tried to do anything but run, I would get turned into a human meat cake.

As I turned a street corner and continued sprinting, I saw my ticket: a narrow alley between two apartment buildings. I charged and ducked behind a wall. As quickly as possible, I pulled out a ballpoint pen from my pocket and uncapped it. It grew long and heavy in my hand, until I held a large bronze sword. Just in time. The hellhound came roaring around the corner, its eyes wild and its tongue lolling, drool flying from its mouth. I knew I couldn't hide in this alley for long. The monster would sniff me out sooner or later.

I was right. As the hellhound raced past the alley, it took a deep sniff and screeched to a halt. Then it quickly reversed and headed back towards me. As it came back, I jumped as high as I could manage and drove Riptide into its chest.

I watched as its eyes got wide and it let a yelp before exploding into yellow dust as I hit the ground.

I got up, brushed the stuff out of my hair, and put Riptide back into my pocket. I had just begun to glance around to see if any of the mortals had noticed when a voice from above called, "Percy!"

I looked up and my heart sank. I guess I'd subconsciously run to my own apartment. And standing outside my front door was none other than my mom's fiancé, Paul Blowfis.

I gave Paul another lame excuse: the school bully had been chasing me from school because I wouldn't give him my money. When I got to the apartment, I thought I had lost him, but I had hidden in the alley, just to make sure.

Once again, Paul offered to help me with the "bully"- "After all, I am a teacher, Percy"- and once again I had refused. I was a little ticked off, because it was just my luck that Paul had taken off early from school today _and _that he had come straight to our apartment. I had used the bully excuse at least four times this year, but in the end Paul gave up and left me alone.

Half an hour later, when Paul had left, my mom had steered me into the living room and sat me down.

"Percy, we have to talk about this," she said, worry in her eyes. "This is the third time you've been attacked by a monster this week."

I stared at the floor. "So?" I said.

"It's Monday," she added bluntly.

I sighed in defeat. She stared at me worriedly. "I know you're trying your best, Percy, but we can't keep doing this. Paul is starting to figure things out, and I can't keep covering for you forever. We have to think of something else. Before we get married."

I sighed again, then I looked up at her. I could tell she didn't want to say it, but the look on her face told me enough.

"It's time to tell him, isn't it?" I said.

"I could do it, Percy. Or…"

I shook my head. "No. I've got to do this myself. I'll tell him tomorrow. Right after the picnic."

She looked straight into my eyes. "Promise?"

"Promise."

She looked relieved. "Thank you, Percy." She brightened. "I've got an idea! Why don't we go out to eat tonight. And when we get back, we can start packing for camp."

That cheered me up a little. "Okay." I said. Then I went upstairs to take a shower.

I didn't feel any better the next day at school.

I mean, don't get me wrong, I liked Paul. And my mom had been ten times happier than I'd ever seen her ever since he proposed to her, almost three months ago. But how was I supposed to tell him that the Greek gods were alive and that I was a demigod son of Poseidon? That's not a typical conversation you have with your future stepdad.

I passed by Paul on my way to my locker. He smiled and winked at me, and I felt even worse. I was never going to be able to do this.

I stopped at my locker and opened it. Students at Goode High School were buzzing with excitement today. It was the last day of school; exams were over (thank the gods) and after our half day today the school was having its annual end-of-the-year picnic, with a concert from some of the older kids' band and everything. I was mostly just excited because I'd talked to Tyson a couple of days before, and he'd told me he could come up to Manhattan from the Cyclops forges and that he'd come with my mom to the picnic.

Things were getting pretty complicated down there. The old sea gods were stirring and my father was at war with them. Tyson had been forced to leave halfway through the year because Dad needed everyone he could get. We had had a heated argument last December because he had insisted that I stay with my mom and go to regular school. We had never really fought before, but that was the closest we had come. In the end, he had convinced me to stay, because my survival was crucial at the moment.

I sighed. Life wasn't easy when your next birthday could decide the fate of Olympus.

As I was loading all of my books from my locker into my bag, a familiar voice called "Percy."

I turned, looking past the armload of books I was carrying. A red-haired girl whose clothes and face had dots of paint on them was walking down the hall towards me. It was Rachel.

"Hey, do you have that art book I had at your house the other night? I think I left it there."

I shrugged, dumped the books I was carrying into my bag, and got another load.

She nudged me. "Hey, what's wrong with you?" she asked. "You of all people should be happy to finally be getting out of school."

I made sure no one was looking, then I quietly told her about Paul.

She shrugged. "You were going to have to do it sooner or later," she said dismissively. "Better to do it _before _you decide the fate of the world, I guess."

"Will you please be quiet about that?" I said, looking around to make sure no one had heard.

"Hey, cheer up," she said, smiling. "Only a couple of hours until the picnic. Tyson's going to be there. And Annabeth."

I almost dropped the books I was carrying. I slowly looked up at Rachel. "WHAT?"

It's a bit of a cliffie, I know. I don't have much this week, so I should be able to update soon, but only if I get reviews!


	2. We Have an Incredibly Awkward Picnic

**Thank you guys for your reviews! I'm going to ask for 5 from now on before I update, but for now, here's Chapter Two!**

**This chapter has a few little things in dialogue from previous books, but I promise it wasn't intentional.**

**Chapter Two- We Have An Incredibly Awkward Picnic**

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN ANNABETH'S COMING?" I yelled at Rachel, ignoring the people who were staring at us.

"Yeah, I invited her," said Rachel, beaming. "Isn't that great?"

I would have strangled her if my arms hadn't been loaded with books. I dropped them on the floor. "Why did you invite her?" I asked desperately. _How could you possibly make me feel even worse?_

"I just thought she might like to come," she replied, shrugging. "Why do you look like you're about to be sick?"

That really was how I felt. "How did you even talk to her?" I asked. "I mean, you couldn't unless…" My eyes suddenly widened with anger. "It _was_ you who took my last drachma!"

"Ooooh, yeah sorry about that. I kind of wanted it to be a surprise." She grinned sheepishly. "Surprise!"

I groaned, mumbled something about the library (which I later realized shouldn't have fooled Rachel, because I hadn't been to the library three times the entire year), picked up my immensely heavy backpack, and started walking down the hall. As I walked away from her, I thought I heard Rachel say, "Well, I think he took that pretty well."

I was distraught. I mean, she was my best friend and all, but things hadn't been going so well between me and Annabeth lately. The last time I'd really talked to her, she'd pretty much ticked off an immortal goddess for my sake. That wasn't _exactly_ how I'd pictured that moment on the hilltop to end, and now we hadn't spoken in months. To find out that she was coming, today, in just a few hours…I was literally shaking.

_Relax,_ I told myself. _It's just Annabeth. What's there to worry about?_

But I couldn't relax. I didn't relax for the rest of the day, even when the bell rang and the school was filled with the cheers of six hundred hyperactive teenagers as they ran outside and jumped into their cars to go to the picnic. I walked outside slowly, suddenly dreading the picnic more than ever.

Nevertheless, I hitched a ride with my buddy Conrad, his older brother, and a couple of his brother's goofy friends. As we drove through Manhattan, listening to rock music and the older guys messing around and acting like doofuses, a thought suddenly occurred to me.

"Hey Conrad," I said. "Guess what? I'm done with school."

He blinked. "Very good, Percy. Would you like a sticker?"

I rolled my eyes. "No, I mean, I've never completed a full year at any school before. This was my ninth school in nine years, and I actually finished."

I looked out the window, suddenly awed. I felt good about myself, but also strangely disappointed. I guess I had wanted to keep my record up. Oh well.

We came to a large field where we were having the picnic and jumped out of the car. A large stage was set up on the far end, and a bunch of junior and senior guys were tuning up their instruments and all that stuff. Hot dogs, barbeque, chips, and deserts were set up on two long tables next to coolers of drinks, and people were spreading picnic blankets all over the field. I immediately mauled the food, along with half of the other guys, piling my plate before all the good stuff was gone. Rachel invited me over to her blanket, and I sat down, keeping an eye out for my mom or Annabeth.

The band introduced themselves and started to play, and they actually weren't half bad. Through the first couple of songs, I talked with Rachel and her Art Club friends on her blanket, but I got up when I saw my mom's car park in the edge of the field. She got out, and with her was a huge kid with peanut butter in his teeth. I grinned and walked over.

"Percy!" cried my half-brother Tyson, running at me and squeezing me into a bone crushing hug.

"Hey, big guy," I said, struggling for air. "Ouch, gotta breath, gotta breath…"

"Sorry," Tyson blushed and let me go.

"Here's a blanket," said my mom, smiling. "I'm going to go _talk to Paul_." She gave me a glance as she said that, like I'd forgotten my promise. Yeah right.

Tyson attacked the food table and came back with four barbeque sandwiches. We sat down on the blanket and started catching up.

"So, how goes the war down there?" I said, trying not to sound bitter for Tyson's sake.

"It is going good," said Tyson between Cyclops-sized bites. "But Daddy is worried. He thinks that…" His eyebrows furrowed as he struggled to remember. "Typhoon?"

"Typhon," I corrected.

"Right," said Tyson. "He thinks that he will escape very soon. Forces must be ready. Typhon will be hard to beat."

"Yeah." Haphaestus had once told me that the gods themselves ran from Typhon when he was free. I didn't like how things were looking if the Titan escaped.

Rachel came over and starting chatting with Tyson, and I got up to get some more food. I was standing in line when I heard a voice behind me. "Hey, Seaweed Brain."

I jumped and turned around, and it was her. Her blonde hair was tied back in a ponytail, and her gray eyes looked me over critically, like she was deciding how best to take me down. She was dressed in a white tank top and shorts, and she looked shorter for some reason. Or maybe I was just taller.

"Annabeth," I said, and for a second, the music, all the noise seemed to fade away. All there was in the world was me and her. Then something told me to snap out of it. "I mean, uh, hey, Wise Girl. You made it."

She smirked. "Yeah. It wasn't easy, mind you. I had ride with the Gray Sisters all the way from Vegas."

"What?" I said, confused. "I thought they only did business in New York."

"Times have changed," she said darkly. "They've been forced to expand their business to all of the major cities, mostly getting demigods to camp." She kind of winced when she said the word _camp_. Or maybe it was just my imagination.

"Anyway, they argued the whole way there, as usual, and we almost went over a couple of bridges on the way. It was awful."

I laughed, remembering when Tyson, Annabeth and I had taken the Gray Sister's taxi to camp, a couple of years ago. "I guess they can be a _little_ obnoxious," I said.

She grinned. "A little," she agreed.

Just when I was really starting to think we could get over the awkwardness from before, a guy farther back in line yelled, "Will you hurry it up?"

I wanted to tell the guy to shut his trap, but Annabeth said, "Come one, let's go sit down."

I reluctantly backed down. "Fine," I said.

"Annabeth!" Tyson suddenly came barreling up to us, smiling and showing off the strands of barbeque that was now mixed with the peanut butter in his teeth.

"Tyson!" said Annabeth, beaming and hugging him. Rachel followed behind him, looking a little uncomfortable.

Annabeth broke away from Tyson and stared at Rachel. Memories from our adventures in the Labyrinth came rushing back to me, of how many times these two had argued. I quickly stepped in and broke the staring contest. "Rachel, you remember Annabeth," I said, and then I slapped myself mentally because of how stupid that must have sounded.

"Yeah," said Rachel, still staring at her. Annabeth just nodded coldly.

Tyson seemed to sense the awkwardness. "I think I will…go get more sandwiches," he said.

"I'll come with you," said Rachel, and they walked off together.

"What's with you two?" I asked when they had left.

She turned on me sharply. "What do you mean?" she snapped.

"Forget it," I mumbled. We stood in silence for a moment. I pretended to watch the band.

"So," Annabeth began, "How's your life been, Seaweed Brain?"

She sounded so casual, I couldn't resist. "Oh, nothing much," I said sarcastically. "I've just being attacked by monsters every other day since August, I've got to tell my future stepdad that I'm the son of a Greek god today, and in less than three months I've got to face the Titan Lord and decide the fate of Olympus. But other than that, nothing's really new."

I could tell that had hurt her. "No need to sound so cold, Percy," she said, her eyes narrowing. "I was just asking."

"Thanks," I grumbled. "That makes me feel better."

She tried to ignore me. "So, have you come up with anything about…you know…defeating Kronos?"

By _beating Kronos_, she mean _saving Luke_.

"Nico found me last August," I said. "He told me he knows a way to beat Lu…Kronos. According to him, it's our only chance of stopping him."

"What is it?" asked Annabeth, forgetting she was supposed to be cross with me for a second.

I looked around. "Not here," I said quietly. "I'll tell you when we get to camp."

She looked suspicious, but she nodded. "Okay," she said. "So, anything else?"

"Yeah," I said. I told her about my dad.

"Oh, that," she said, like it was old news. "Not that it's not important or anything, but I really think we've got bigger things to worry about than some old smelly sea guys trying to take over a little water."

That _really _ticked me off. She'd basically just insulted my father. "Oh, yeah, that's right," I said, "I forgot that Athena teaches all her children that Poseidon is an idiot who has no _real_ problems so they have more time to work on their dorky little inventions."

Tears sprang into your eyes. "You know what, Percy…"

But whatever she was going to say was interrupted by screams coming from the edge of the field. I turned and saw dark shapes springing towards us, causing the teenagers and adults to run in all directions, screaming.

My hand flew to my pocket. _Please, no, _I begged silently. _Not here!_

But there was no getting around it. We were under attack.

**I know, it's boring and looooong. More action in the next chapter, I promise. Remember, 5 reviews, and if you have any suggestions or criticism,** **please include that.**


	3. We Blow Up A Couple of Old Friends

**Once again, thanks for your reviews. They were a lot more positive than I expected. I'll be kind of busy this next week until at least Friday, but I'll try and update as often as I can. For now, here's chapter 3.**

**Chapter Three- We Blow Up A Couple of Old Friends**

I've fought a lot of monsters before, but none have made quite as big an entrance as these two.

With a mighty roar, two gleaming creatures charged through the field, taking down at least three cars in the process. They were huge bronze bulls with silver horns and rubies for eyes. _Oh, no,_ I thought. I'd fought these bulls two years ago, on top of Half-Blood Hill, and I was not excited to see them again.

"Oh, joy," muttered Annabeth next to me. She had drawn her bronze knife and was gripping it tightly, her expression grim. I uncapped Riptide, and together we charged.

The bulls were raging around the field now, running off all the people and destroying the band's stage. One of them spotted us. It growled and charged toward us, and a burst of flame exploded from its snout. Apparently it remembered us from last time.

"Out of the way!" screamed Annabeth. She pulled her magic Yankees cap out of her back pocket, then she put it on and vanished. I was forced to jump for my life as the bull shot by like a fiery missile.

"Bad cow!" I heard a voice yell in surprise, and Tyson came running towards us. He tackled the bull, and they went rolling away on the grass.

Before I could go help Tyson, Annabeth yelled, "Percy, look out!" from somewhere next to me. I turned around just in time to see the second bull running at me. I jumped out of the way, then turned and slashed with Riptide; the bull roared in agony as I cut a good-sized gash in its side. It turned and spat a huge wave of fire at me.

I barely got out of the way. I felt my skin burn as the fire raged past me, and then the bull was charging again. I was already exhausted, and I wasn't sure how long I could go on like this.

"Percy!" called Tyson from behind me. I dodged the bull again and looked at him. He had managed to pin the first bull down on its side, but I knew even he couldn't hold that for long. He threw something to me. I caught it. It was a wristwatch, similar to the one Tyson had made for me a long time ago. I'd damaged it fighting a manticore once, and after Tyson had repaired it I had lost it in the Labyrinth. Surely this wasn't the same one…?

"It is for you!" said Tyson, struggling to keep the bull down. "Press the button!"

I put it on my wrist and automatically hit the side button on the watch. Immediately, it began expanding rapidly on my hand until it was a large, round bronze shield.

Not a moment to soon. Bad Cow Number Two came charging back at me and spat some more fire at me. I raised the shield right as the fire hit me. I expected to get fried, or at least for the metal of the shield to melt, but I couldn't feel anything. It wasn't even warm.

The shield was fireproof. How convenient.

I raised my sword and leapt in the air as the bull came towards me. One slash from Riptide and the bull's head went rolling away in the grass. The rest of its body kept running and crashed into the food tables. Then it fell over, smoking and twitching, and finally exploded altogether.

I was feeling pretty good about myself when Annabeth yelled, "Percy! We need help!"

I looked over. Tyson, somehow, still had the bull pinned to the ground. Annabeth's knife was sticking out of its neck, and she was trying to help Tyson without touching the bull's white-hot skin.

Suddenly the bull let out an explosion of flames and threw Tyson off of him. It turned and slammed Annabeth with one of its horns before she could react, and she went flying back into the grass and did not get up.

The bull rose slowly and lowered its head, preparing to charge her. I knew I had to do something. In an instant, I felt my legs moving and then I was between Annabeth and the bull. I dropped my sword, cried, "No!" and raised my arms.

A huge, powerful jet of water burst out of the air around my palms. It hit the bull so hard it took its feet out from under it. I continued to direct the jet of water at it as it flailed helplessly on the ground. I was torturing it, but I wasn't done yet. Keeping the jet going with my shield arm, I raised Riptide, which had returned to my hand and, focusing all my strength, I jumped back and hurled the sword into the jet of water.

Riptide shot through the jet like a bullet, going at least a hundred miles an hour. It drove itself through Bad Cow Number Two's mechanical heart, and with a final wail, the bull's insides burst and its outer skin went flying everywhere. It was dead.

Gradually, the jet of water receded, and I was standing in the middle of charred field full of pieces of melted bronze armor. Tyson came running over. He looked okay, and I figured the blast hadn't hurt him too badly, since Cyclops were immune to fire. He glanced around and said, "Bad cow…?"

I pointed to the place where the bull had exploded. "He went boom," I said. Tyson clapped happily. Then he looked at the shield. "Did it help?" he asked.

"Yeah, it did," I said. "But Tyson, how did you…"

"It is a new shield," he replied. "I made it…while I was at forges."

I looked at the shield. The old one had been decorated with pictures from our adventures in the Sea of Monsters. This one was covered in beautiful carvings of our journey through the Labyrinth. I saw me shooting an arrow through Geryon's chests (he had three- long story), Tyson throwing the sphinx's grading machine at her, and Tyson and Grover, my other best friend, getting chased by a giant snake.

"You rock, Tyson," I said, and Tyson blushed again. "Seriously, I owe…"

"Percy!" called a sudden voice. I turned. Rachel had come out of her hiding place, and was kneeling next Annabeth's unmoving figure.

"Oh, no," I said. Tyson and I rushed over.

She didn't look good. She was bruised in several places, and she had a huge, deep gash where the bull's horn had torn into her. Her skin was chalky white, and her breathing was quick and strained.

"We have to get her some nectar," I said. "But…"

Suddenly I hear the flapping of wings behind me. I saw a pure black horse with wings gently come to a landing next to me. Along with him were three others, one brown and two white.

_Yo, boss! _spoke a voice in my mind. _Heard ya got in a little trouble, huh?_

"Blackjack!" I cried. "But…how did you…."

_No time to explain, _said Blackjack. _We gotta get to camp, and fast._

"Wait, Blackjack, we have to go to my house. Annabeth's hurt. She needs medicine."

The pegasus glanced at Annabeth and nodded. _Hop on._

I hoisted up the unconscious Annabeth and placed her on one pegasus. Tyson and I were about to get on ours, when suddenly I remembered Rachel. "Oh," I said. "Um…"

_She's coming too, boss, _said Blackjack.

"What?" I said, surprised.

_Yep. I got strict orders to deliver _all _you kids to Camp Half-Blood, pronto. _

"Um, okay, I guess," I said. "Rachel, you're coming with us."

She glanced up. "What?" she said. "Why?"

I shrugged. "Just get on," I said. "We gotta go."

She still looked suspicious, but in the end she jumped on the brown pegasus. Then, with a whinny from Blackjack, the pegasi launched themselves into the air, and soon we were soaring over Manhattan.

I gave Blackjack quick directions to my apartment, and soon we were tearing up to the front door, Tyson carrying Annabeth.

I burst inside to find my worst nightmare: Paul was sitting at the table, his clothes torn, telling something to my mom, who looked terrified. When he saw us he cried, "Percy! Rachel, what's going on?"

I didn't have time to explain things to him. "Rachel, go to my room and get that canteen of nectar under my bed." She ran up the stairs while Tyson and I set Annabeth down on the couch."

Paul walked in, with my mom behind. They both gasped when they saw Annabeth, but they didn't say anything. Rachel came down a minute later with the nectar. Paul raised his eyebrows when he saw the canteen, but he still said nothing.

I poured some of the drink into Annabeth's mouth. She swallowed, then her eyes fluttered open. "What…what happened?" she asked.

"You got hit by a bull," I replied with a grin. "Nice going, Wise Girl."

She smirked, but then she winced with pain. I gave her some more nectar and then turned around to look at Paul. My mom was looking at me expectantly, and I rolled my eyes on the inside. "Um, Paul," I began, "I know this might seem strange, but…"

He held up his hand. "It's all right, Percy," he said. "I suspected this for a long time, although I must say, I didn't think you had so many friends who were demigods and monsters too."

I stared at him in shock. "What…you know about demigods?"

He nodded, looked at me gravely, and then gave a little bow. "Paul Blowfis," he said, "son of Morpheus."

For a second, I didn't comprehend what he was saying. "What…?"

"Morpheus," said Annabeth. She still looked pained, but she was looking at Paul with respect. "God of dreams. Percy, Paul is a half-blood."


	4. Bad News All Around

Thank you guys for your reviews

**Sorry about the wait people, but I was really busy this week. I'm still not satisfied with my reviews, but because I like where this story is going, I'm going to keep updating anyway.**

**Chapter Four- **

I opened my mouth, then closed it, then opened it, then closed it again. When I finally found my voice, I said, "Paul…you're a half-blood?"

He smiled at me. "You look so surprised," he said, "But yes, Percy, I am a half-blood. As your friend here says, my father is Morpheus, god of dreams. I grew up at Camp Half-Blood, and I was one of the few who lived to adulthood." He shook his head sadly. "I heard that my father has turned to the Titan's side. I can assure you I do not support him."

"We believe you," said Annabeth, "But we have to go, like, _now._ Percy, get your stuff. I'll get the pegasi." She got up off the couch, rubbed her head, and went outside. I went upstairs, and subconsciously began grabbing the bag I had packed and some other things off the floor.

I was in shock. Never, not once, had I ever even _considered _the _possibility _that Paul could be a half-blood. I mean, I had never met an adult one before; most either died on dangerous quests or been eaten by monsters. To learn that my own future stepfather was an adult half-blood was…crazy. I got everything together and was about to walk out the door when something caught my eye: a small white disk on my dresser. I walked over and picked it up. It was the sand dollar my dad had given me for my last birthday. What had he said? _When the time comes, I think you'll know what to do with it. _Then my mom called my name from downstairs. Without thinking, I stuck it in my pocket and ran downstairs.

Everyone was waiting outside. Tyson and Annabeth had their bags too, although where Annabeth's had come from was beyond me. Paul was stroking Blackjack's neck and looking at him in awe. I guess he hadn't seen a pegasi in a while. "Ready?" my mom asked me.

"Yeah," I said. Rachel, Annabeth, Tyson and I mounted the pegasi. My mom patted my hand. "Be careful, honey," she said. "Don't get into too much trouble."

"I'll try not to," I said with a smile. "And, Mom, it's possible that I might not see you before…" I swallowed. "Before the big day."

She nodded worriedly. "I know, Percy," she said. "Just stay loyal to your friends and do what your heart tells you, and when the times, I think you'll make the right decision."

She patted my hand one more time and then backed away. I turned to look at Paul. His face gave away nothing, but I thought I saw a sort of sadness in his eyes. "Paul," I began, "I guess…"

He waved his hand. "Save it, Percy. I know I should have told you I was a half-blood sooner."

I nodded. "Me too, I guess."

"But now we know, so there's nothing to hide. I haven't been in touch with this part of my life for a long time, but there is one thing I remember from my time at camp: our side must remain strong together, or we will fall to the Titans easily. So promise me you won't hesitate to tell me and your mother anything on your mind while you're at camp, and I'll promise the same."

I looked straight at him, and now there was a sort of pride in his eyes; the same pride that I had seen in my father, Poseidon, right before I had parted from him after we had met for the first time. That's when I realized: he was proud I was his stepson, even after everything that had happened. I tried not to choke, and I said, "I promise."

He nodded. "Then so do I."

And with that, the pegasi began beating their wings and rose in the air. "Oh, and Percy…" Paul called. I looked at him, and he smiled. "Congratulations on finishing ninth grade."

And I didn't realize, until we were high in the air and flying over Manhattan once more, what I had been thinking the entire time: I was proud to call Paul my stepdad too.

--

We soared over Long Island, the pegasi gliding easily around the clouds. I knew there was something else I had to take care of. I brought Blackjack up next to Annabeth's pegasus. "Hey," I said.

She looked at me, and I turned to look down at the city. "I'm sorry about what I said earlier," I said slowly.

"I'm sorry too," she said. "I really do think your dad's war is important. I don't know why I said that. I just…"

She went silent, and we looked at each other for a minute. That shiny blonde hair glowing gold in the sunlight, those sparkling gray eyes…

_Boss, we're coming up on camp, _said Blackjack.

I snapped out of it. "What?"

_We're comin' up on camp, _he repeated. _But we gotta get off and let the mortal inside the boundaries first. _

I looked back. Tyson had been happily chatting with his pegasus the entire way, but Rachel had been quiet. She was looking at the back of her pegasus's neck and not saying anything. "Oh. Okay."

We gently descended and came to rest on the top of a hill. I looked down into the valley and saw the familiar Greek-style buildings glittering in the sunlight, and I had to sigh in relief. I was home.

To my right, Thalia's pine tree was glowing with health, the Golden Fleece glittering on its lowest branch. The guard dragon, which was now the size of a eighteen-wheeler, was snoozing beside it. I walked over and patted its head while Annabeth walked inside the magical borders. She turned and looked at Rachel, and I could tell this wasn't something she was thrilled about doing. But she said, "I, Annabeth Chase, give you permission to enter Camp Half-Blood."

Thunder boomed overhead, and the dragon raised its head sleepily. Rachel tentatively stepped across the boundary and sighed when she was next to Annabeth. I guess she was half expecting to blow up or something.

Tyson and I thanked Blackjack and his pegasi friends and then caught up with them as they walked down toward the familiar farmhouse in the valley. The summer campers had just arrived, so I was guessing everyone was in their cabins. We walked up to the porch of the Big House and saw a familiar scene: a porky man in a tiger-pattern Hawaiian shirt and a older guy in a wheelchair were playing a card game on a table.

We walked up, and the older guy looked up at us and smiled. "Percy!" he said. "Annabeth, Tyson, you made it!"

I walked up and shook his hand. "Hi, Chiron," I said. "I guess this means I have to play, doesn't it?"

He gave me a small smile. "Yes, Percy. I need to speak with all of you for a moment. Then you can go and meet Grover. He has much to tell you."

"Okay." I reluctantly sat down at the table. The other man looked up at me with a bored expression. "Don't expect me to be happy to see you," Mr. D said, "Just because you have to decide my fate before summer's end."

I clenched my fists. I _really_ wished people would quit joking about it, especially Dionysus. Chiron dealt out the cards and then looked at Annabeth and me. "I want to hear what happened, from the top.

With Annabeth's help, I managed to tell him about the bulls.

When we were finished, he nodded gravely. "So, the bronze bulls truly have returned," he said. "I feared this. Many monsters from the past are reawakening, some that I have not seen in centuries. It is possible that Kronos is awakening every monster in his possession to try and stop the gods."

It was my turn to bid. "But if all these ancient monsters are awakening, can't Artemis and the Hunters take care of them?" I thought about the twelve-year-old girl who it had taken me a while to come to know as Artemis. My friend, Thalia, a daughter of Zeus, had joined the Hunters winter before last to become immortal and free herself from the prophecy, dumping all the responsibility on me. Not that I'm bitter or anything.

"Well, Percy…" Chiron looked worried. "I think I'll let Grover tell you."

I didn't know what he meant, but I decided to hold my questions.

"Okay," I said, "So how are things here?"

"Oh, please, don't get him started," said Mr. D. Chiron looked grave.

"Things are not well, I am afraid. More half-bloods have joined the side of Kronos, and the ones we have left are losing confidence. Clarisse has done her best to keep spirits up, but I fear that soon we are going to break, and then it will be easy picking for Kronos. Plus, monsters come every night to the camp borders nowadays. They bang against the boundaries and try to attack the Fleece. You noticed the scars on Peleus's neck?"

I didn't know what he was talking about, but Annabeth nodded. "I wondered what had done that."

"A _dracaena_," replied Chiron. "Things are not looking good at all."

"Percy!" cried a sudden voice, and a teenager with curly brown hair stumbled up the steps. "You're here!"

He walked up the towards me, his rasta cap

"Hey G-man," I said, slapping his hand. He hugged Annabeth, and even Tyson patted him on the back and almost knocked him off his feet.

"I suppose you may go now, Percy," sighed Chiron. "But don't be late for dinner. As for me, I must have a word with our Rachel Elizabeth Dare."

Rachel stared at him in surprise. "What?" she said.

"Go on, Percy," said Chiron. "I'll see you at dinner."

So the four of us went off to find some place to talk in private. We stopped at our cabins first to drop off our stuff, and then Annabeth got in an argument with one of her cabin mates and Tyson wanted to check up on his fish ponies, so it wound up just being Grover and me. We got in a canoe and floated out over the lake, the water clearing my head and helping me think.

I told him about what Chiron had said, and Grover nodded. "Yeah, things are bad," he said. "I think six half-bloods have joined Kronos since Christmas. At least half of them were unclaimed." He looked worried. "They're turning bitter, Percy. They're angry that their parents still haven't claimed them, even in times like these."

I nodded. I remembered the frustration I had felt when I had first come to Camp Half-Blood, waiting for my father to claim me and getting no response. Grover and I talked some more about the half-bloods, about Typhon and Dad's war, and then I got around to asking him about his project after Pan's death.

His expression turned gloomy. "It went okay at first," I said. "The satyrs went off and defended the national parks, and hunted for the last wild places, and things like that. But no one had any luck. The mortals wouldn't listen to a bunch of kids, and although we've hunted down every last forest in the United States, we can't find any wild places."

"That's not good," I said.

"Yeah," Grover replied, "Most of them have given up, but I've still got a circle of those who are loyal. Right now, though, it's not looking great."

I remembered when we had found Pan, the lost god of the wild, and he had given up his spirit to Grover, Annabeth, Tyson, Rachel, Nico, and me. Since then, Grover had been trying to convince the satyrs that Pan really was dead so they could start saving the wild themselves, but he had had much luck at first. It didn't sound like that was improving.

"It gets worse," said Grover. "Thalia and the Hunters are missing."

I almost fell off the canoe. "W-what?" I asked.

Grover nodded. "I know it sounds crazy, but it's true. A month or so ago, Artemis came to Olympus, her clothes torn and her bow snapped in half. She told the Olympians 'We have to save them' and then she fell to the ground. When she woke up, she couldn't remember what had happened except that something had attacked them and taken the Hunters away. They've been missing ever since. Artemis is distraught. The wild animals are going crazy, attacking humans and doing all kinds of stuff, and at night the moon isn't half as bright as it usually is."

"Yeah, I saw that on the news," I said, remembering how some scientist guy had tried to explain it with some kind of theory. Now I knew the truth. "Anyway…that's the worst news I've heard all day, and I've heard a lot of bad news. The Hunters are missing…how could that happen?"

"I don't know," said Grover, sniffling. "But if Chiron would let me, I would be out there looking for them right now. It's so unfair."

We sat in silence for a minute, thinking about the Hunters and how they could have gone missing. Finally Grover said, "Well, at any rate, it hasn't improved the satyrs' mood. They're so sad they aren't near as into the whole saving the wild thing anymore."

I sighed. "So is there any _good _news?" I asked hopefully.

Grover had to think about that one. "Hey, it's Friday," he said, brightening a little. "You guys got here just in time for Capture the Flag."


	5. Rachel Captures the Flag

**Woohoo! The reviews are finally coming in! Thanks a lot guys, I can probably update a lot more now.**

**I'm finally introducing my OC in this chapter! Aren't you happy? Seriously, I'm starting to regret using his name in the title, but oh well. Here's Chapter Five.**

Grover and I got out of the boat and went to change for dinner. My clothes were burned and my muscles were exhausted, so I took a shower and changed into my orange Camp Half-Blood t-shirt and shorts. Tyson had apparently decided to clean the entire cabin to match his fish ponies, so I waited until he was satisfied, then we went down to the pavilion for dinner.

Grover and Annabeth met us on the way, along with a small girl with tinged green eyes- Juniper, Grover's girlfriend. She gave me a smile and said hi, but I could tell she seemed a little tense, and I remembered what Grover had said about the wild going berserk because of the Hunters. Maybe it was affecting the wood nymphs too.

We walked into the pavilion and greeted Chiron, who was now in full centaur form, and Rachel, who stood timidly next to the centaur and was looking at everyone shyly. Most of the campers were already there, and they were talking and laughing and occasionally giving Rachel curious looks. They could obviously sense that this girl was not half-blood.

"Percy, I was wondering if Rachel could sit at your table tonight," said Chiron, with a look that told me he _needed_ her to sit there.

"Sure, Chiron," I said. "Come on, Rachel."

I led her to the Poseidon table with Tyson. Soon, dryads appeared with platters of pizza and fresh fruit. When everyone had been served, people began moving to the brazier and scraping a portion of their food into the flames. I quietly explained to Rachel that it was an offering for the gods and then tossed in a small slice of pizza. _Poseidon, help me with everything, _I thought. Then I walked back over to my table.

"So, Rachel," I asked, "What did Chiron talk to you about?"

She looked at me like she was wondering whether she should tell me or not. Then she sighed. "He told me to keep a low profile while I was here."

"What?" I said. "Why?"

"Percy, did you see the way they're staring at me? People can already sense that I don't belong here, and if they were to find out that I'm…" She leaned in closer. "That I'm _mortal_, I'd become an outcast so fast I could be dead within days. They don't like a mortal in a place where they've thought only half-bloods can come."

I blinked. "Don't you think that's a little overdramatic?"

She jerked her head over to the Ares table. There, a dozen big, mean kids were shooting death glares at the back of her head and whispering to each other. Other kids were giving her suspicious looks, too, and it looked like Rachel was already being separated out.

I looked down. "I see," I said.

"All that to say, I've just got to lay low. Not talk much to anyone but you guys, stay out of other people's business, stuff like that."

"But Rachel should not have to do that," Tyson protested through a mouthful of pizza. "Rachel is nice!"

"Yeah, big guy," I replied. "Rachel is nice."

After everyone was done eating, Chiron got up and hit his hoof on the floor for silence. "A few announcements," he said, looking out at us. "First of all, a reminder that no purposeful damage of other cabins is permitted while staying here…"

"It's just a little charred," muttered Conner Stoll from the Hermes table. "We can fix it."

Chiron pretended like he didn't hear him. "Secondly, our first summer game of Capture the Flag is tonight…"

An explosion of cheering burst from the campers.

"But tonight, we were thinking of…ah…mixing things up a bit," said Chiron, and we quieted down a little.

"We understand that in the outside world, the weather is not always as pleasant as it is here at camp. Heroes need to learn to get their job done despite many obstacles. So, tonight, Capture the Flag will be played during a storm."

Mixed reactions burst from the campers: some excited, some grumpy. I didn't know what to think. I guess it would be fun to play in the rain. Sort of a new experience, and being the son of Poseidon, I would be stronger in the rain.

Chiron cleared his throat. "For those of you joining us tonight, the Athena cabin currently holds the laurels…"

More cheering, mostly from table six.

"So I'll expect the rest of you to play twice as hard!" Chiron concluded.

I clenched my fists. I hadn't done so hot last year with capture the flag, so I was eager to get my rep back up.

The conch horn sounded and two campers from the Athena and Haphaestus cabins charged into the pavilion carrying two huge banners. I was surprised, because Haphaestus rarely ever led a team. Then again, their cabin had grown significantly in the past year. I'd noticed at least four new campers at their table tonight. The god of the forges must have been feeling fatherly lately.

Athena's flag was silver and painted with a barn owl on an olive branch. Haphaestus's was copper-colored, with a huge welding hammer that was engulfed in flames.

The teams were announced: Athena was siding with Poseidon, Hermes, Dionysus, and Aphrodite. This may sound pretty good, but Poseidon's cabin was just Tyson and me, and the only camper left in Dionysus was a guy named Pollux. His half-brother had died last year in what was known as the Battle of the Labyrinth.

That left Haphaestus with Apollo, Ares, and Demeter. After everyone knew their sides, Chiron brandished his hands and the tables were covered in armor and weapons. I grabbed my bronze armor and began to put it on, when I noticed that next to Tyson's Cyclops-sized armor and weapons there was another, smaller suit of armor, probably used by a female.

Rachel stared at it in disbelief. "I'm supposed to…play?"

"Yes, child," said Chiron, walking up behind her. "I'd like you to play with Athena's side tonight. It will be a good experience for you."

"But, Chiron I'm not…" She lowered her voice. "I'm not even a half-blood, remember? How am I supposed to play?"

"Just do your best, child," said Chiron, giving her a strange look before walking off. Rachel turned to look at me in horror. I shrugged. "Just give a shot, I guess." I helped her get her armor on, and then we went to stand with the rest of the blue team.

Annabeth called us forward. We cheered and ran towards the woods. The red team ran in the opposite direction.

We placed our flag in a ditch in the South Woods that was covered in tree roots and other things like that. It increased chances of a surprise attack, but it also made getting out with the flag a lot harder than usual.

Annabeth tapped me on the shoulder. "Percy, you take offense tonight. Okay?"

"Really? Me?" I asked. Annabeth didn't ask me to captain much. This was going to be fun.

She nodded. "Lead a small ambush around the perimeter of the woods and try to surprise them. I'll send a scouting party ahead of you that will also serve as your bodyguards if you get the flag."

"Okay," I said slowly; it seemed sensible to me. Annabeth hurried off to assign more jobs.

I looked over to Half-Blood Hill. Chiron was standing on top, doing a strange incantation with his hands and yelling something in Ancient Greek. As I watched, he put his hands down and yelled a final word. Instantly, I heard the rumble of thunder over our heads. The storm was here.

The sound of the conch horn rang through the woods. We cheered and about twenty campers charged into the enemy's territory. They would serve as our initial attack wave.

Annabeth sent the scouting party of Silena Beauregard and three other campers ahead of us to tell us where the flag was and who was guarding it. In my group was Travis and Connor Stoll, Pollux from the Dionysus cabin, a guy named Matthew from Hermes, a couple of Aphrodite girls, and Tyson. We gave the scouting party two minutes head start, then we dove into the woods after them.

We decided to take the right edge, because there was less fighting going on there. We began moving quietly along. I held Riptide tightly in my right hand and Tyson's Shield was on my left. Tyson gripped his sword, which looked like a knife in his big hands. We would have been a lot more silent if the big guy wasn't constantly stepping on tree branches or bursting out talking, but we were making good time.

Something small hit my helmet. I looked up. Rain was beginning to fall from the gray storm clouds above us. Within minutes, it was a downpour. Everyone else got soaked, but my hereditary waterproof magic made me okay. I was right about the rain strengthening me; instantly, my senses opened up and I began moving more quickly, strength surging through my limbs.

We met Silena and the others behind a huge oak tree. I could hear fighting going on from the other side.

Silena delivered the bad news. "The flag is stationed directly on the other side of the creek, and it's lined with guards on either side," she said. "The two guarding the flag are Beckendorf and Clarisse."

I gulped. This was _not_ going to be easy. Beckendorf and Clarisse were a couple of the biggest campers out here, and I knew from personal experience that both were good fighters.

"Okay," I told them. "You guys take the surprise attack and try to clear an opening in the guards. Pollux and I will go in and try to get the flag. We'll yell at you if we do, and you guys can come and shield us. Got it?"

Everyone nodded. "When I give the signal," I said. We spread out to our various hiding places in the woods. The guards on the creek didn't seem too focused. They were talking to each other or otherwise trying to get out of the rain, and I was surprised Clarisse didn't yell at them to pay attention. Nevertheless, it was a good time to attack.

I slowly I raised my hand and pointed at the creek. "GO! GO! GO!" Travis screamed, and the campers charged into the creek.

I heard the clanging of metal as Clarisse screamed an order at her campers and they began fighting. But we had the upper hand because of our surprise attack. Pollux and I lay low to the ground, hidden in the underbrush. I motioned to him and slowly rose and charged quickly through the creek. Thankfully, no one came for us.

We headed straight for the flag. Clarisse was still barking at her campers, but when she saw us, her eyes narrowed under her helmet and she spat, "Jackson! You're dead, punk!"

A fork of lightning flashed overhead. Clarisse lunged at me with her sword. I parried her strike. "Nice to see you too, Clarisse."

She growled and swung at me again. I blocked the blow with my shield and slammed the butt of my sword into her chest. She stumbled back with a grunt, dazed, but only for a few seconds. I seized my chance and ran for the flag. Pollux had Beckendorf distracted, but he saw me and grimaced. He hit Pollux clean across the head with his shield and lunged for me as Clarisse got up and came at me too.

Oh, great.

I ducked as Clarisse swung her sword, then I came up to parry Beckendorf's javelin. I twisted my sword to try and wrench it out of his grip, but he was faster. He pulled away from me and allowed Clarisse to slam me with her shield. I fell to the ground, hopelessness beginning to cloud my thoughts. At this rate, I was never going to get the fla-

The flag. Where was the flag?

Where it had been a second ago was a small hole in the ground. Nothing more. I glanced over to where Pollux was trying in vain to stand. But if he didn't have the flag, then who…?

"Percy!" I heard a voice call somewhere to my left. I looked through the sheet of rain. There, holding the flag awkwardly, was Rachel.

"Rachel?" I asked in disbelief. "But how…"

I was cut short as I dodged Beckendorf's javelin yet again. Then I saw Clarisse's dark, angry eyes lock on the armored red-haired girl. She understood in an instant.

"Is this what I'm supposed to do with it?" Rachel asked uncertainly.

"YES!" I screamed. "RUN!"

I yelled for my teammates to fall back right as Clarisse cried, "AFTER HER!"

With cries we charged after Rachel as she dove into the forest. She was surprisingly fast, and with us to defend her, she reached the boundary in no time.

With a cheer, we charged across the boundary. Our teammates saw that we had won, and they cheered and dropped their weapons while the red team slumped in defeat. The cheering continued from our team but died when they saw who had gotten the flag. People began murmuring in confusion, and I realized they weren't really looking at Rachel. They were looking at the flag. Normally, when a person captures another team's flag, the flag magically changes to represent that person's cabin. But this flag had remained a Haphaestus flag.

"Who is she?" someone said.

"Whose cabin is she in?" someone else said.

"Don't you see?" an Ares camper said accusingly. "She doesn't even have an Olympian parent!"

"This is bad," murmured Annabeth, who had just appeared next to me holding her Yankees cap and was staring at Rachel with a mixture of worry and grudging.

"She doesn't belong in this game," the Ares camper continued, pointing at Rachel. "She doesn't belong anywhere in this camp!"

"Darrell…" Chiron said warningly.

The camper ignored him. "We have to send her out," he said, "We can't keep her here, because she's m-"

But his words was drowned out by a terrible crash of thunder. We clapped our hands over our ears as the ground shook with the force of it. Then Tyson cried, "Look! On the hill!"

Everyone turned to look, right as a streak of lightning forked across the sky. In the flash of light, I saw the silhouette of a human figure, making its way down the hill.

For a second, we all stared. Then Delios, an Apollo camper, raised his bow and said, "Open fire, Chiron?"

"No!" said Chiron sharply. "We must go investigate. Forward, heroes!"

We all jogged across the valley toward the figure. Rachel had tears streaming down her face, and Grover and Juniper were patting her comfortingly. The Ares camper, Darrell, kept glaring at her out of the corner of his eye. I wanted to punch him, but I had bigger things to worry about at the moment.

We got about ten feet from the figure and stopped, next to the Big House. The figure continued walking towards us. I could now see the figure more clearly. It was a boy, maybe a year or so younger than me. His blonde hair was plastered to his face, and he had so many cuts and scrapes on his body he looked like he had just been mauled by several vicious kittens.

He walked up until he was directly in front of me, breathing hard and staring at the ground. Then he looked straight into my eyes. His eyes were vivid blue- somehow familiar, but I couldn't remember why.

For a moment, we just stared at each other. Then he slowly opened his mouth. "Help," he said faintly, and then he dropped to the ground as thunder rumbled and lightning continued to flash in the sky above.


	6. Jacob Spark Gets A Rude Awakening

**Well I don't really have anything else to say, so here's Chapter Six!**

**Disclaimer: All characters and places in this fic belong to Rick Riordan. (P.S. Am I supposed to be doing that every time? Someone tell me.)**

Chiron told us that capture the flag was over and that we were all to go to bed, which was sort of like a UFO striking Earth and the news people telling everyone to turn their TVs off. There were a lot of protests, but in the end everyone shuffled toward the cabins. I quietly told Tyson to take Rachel to ours, since obviously no one else was going to take her.

I looked over and saw Annabeth and Argus, a guy with eyes all over his body, picking up the boy and taking him into the Big House. I looked pleadingly at Chiron. He considered me for a second, then nodded. I smiled and ran into the Big House.

I followed Annabeth's voice and found the room where they were. I walked in as Argus walked out. He didn't talk much, but he nodded at me as he passed. Then I went into the room.

The boy was lying on a soft bed, his eyes shut, but he didn't look peaceful, more like relieved that he had finally gotten away from it all. Annabeth was next to him, feeding him the pudding stuff she had first fed me when I had passed out here. Ambrosia. **(A/N Is that what it was? I really don't know)** I came over and sat next to her.

"How's he doing?" I asked.

She frowned. "He's not good. A good few of those scrapes are infected, and he's also feverish, but I think he'll be okay." She looked at me. "Where could he have come from?"

I shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe he's a half-blood who got attacked by monsters on his way here?"

She shook her head. "Chiron checked the attendance list. He's never been here before. But he's definitely a half-blood." She spoon-fed him some more pudding. Now that we were in the light, I could study him more closely. He had golden blonde hair, a little lighter than Annabeth's, that fell around his face so he looked like he hadn't had a haircut in months. He was decently athletic, and he was fourteen, maybe fifteen. I would have guessed he was a son of Athena, or maybe Hermes, but those blue eyes seemed familiar somehow…

"You shouldn't have let her get the flag," said Annabeth suddenly.

"What?" I asked.

She glared at me. "Rachel," she said, "You should have taken the flag from her before she crossed the boundary line."

"I guess not," I replied. "But you have to admit, that was pretty good for a mortal."

She shrugged. "Maybe," she said.

We sat in silence for a while. Then Annabeth suddenly looked up, like she had remembered something. "So now will you tell me what Nico said to you last August?"

I looked around the room, went over and shut the door, then sat back down. "Okay," I said quietly. "But you've got to swear to me that no matter what, you won't repeat this to anyone. Understand?"

She looked confused, but she nodded.

I sighed and remembered when I had invited Nico into my house all those months ago, and what he had told me that could possibly stop Luke…

"He made me an offer. A way to beat Luke. But I don't think you'll like it."

Her face betrayed nothing. "I'm listening," she said.

I stared at the wall. "He told me that I could let my soul rest in the Underworld until my body turns sixteen, and then come back to decide the fate of the gods."

Annabeth looked shocked and confused. "What?" she said.

I nodded. "That's what I said. He told me he'd been talking to his father, and he managed to get that out of him. He wasn't forcing me, though. He was giving me a choice. But I've been thinking about it."

"How? Percy, that's crazy. It's like…it's like you're dying temporarily. It would never work."

"Nico thinks it would. And think about it, Annabeth. I could fast forward to when I make my decision. In these last few months, Kronos is going to throw everything he's got at me. He's gonna try to break me, get me to join his side, or otherwise kill me. If I could get out now, while I'm still on the gods' side…I think it could really help."

She was trying to sound angry, but I could tell she was really scared. "Percy, I think it's stupid and it would never work. We don't even know what's going to happen on your sixteenth birthday. What if you need to live out every day until then? There's too many risks, too many ways it could go wrong. Percy, you…you can't. Please."

She was terrified. I knew I had to comfort her. "Don't worry about it," I said. "I haven't made a decision yet." I gently laid my hand over hers. "We'll figure something out."

She went a little red, and my face felt hot too. I started to take my hand away, but she gave a small smile and said, "No."

Then, all of a sudden, our faces got a little closer, and my heart started beating faster…

But right then, the boy inhaled sharply and his eyes shot open. Annabeth immediately moved closer to him. "It's all right," she said. "You're safe now."

He stared at both us fearfully with those blue eyes.

"What's your name?" asked Annabeth.

He slowly opened his mouth. "Jacob," he said hoarsely. "Jacob Spark."

"Jacob Spark," I said slowly. "That's an…interesting name."

He shrugged. "No one ever gave me a name," he said, "So I picked one for myself."

"I'm Annabeth Chase," Annabeth said. "This is Percy Jackson."

He glanced up sharply at that. "Percy Jackson?" he said, looking at me.

I nodded. "Yeah," I said. "That's me."

"Supposed to find him," he murmured. "Supposed to…" Then his face turned chalky white and he fell back again. Annabeth quickly fed him some more ambrosia.

He breathed deeply for a moment, then he looked up at us one more time. "Am I really safe?" he asked.

We nodded. "You are."

He stared at the ceiling and gave a breathy laugh. "Safe," he said, then his eyes closed and he was asleep again.

Annabeth stared at him worriedly. Then she got up. "Change him into those clothes for me, will you? I've got to go get some bandages." She pointed to the white t-shirt and gym shorts that were on the ground. Then she walked out the door.

I reluctantly changed the Jacob Spark's clothes, thinking about what had just happened. Why was he supposed to find me? What could he possibly want from me? I wished he would wake up again, so I could talk to him some more.

And with Annabeth…I hadn't really meant to go that far. It just sort of…happened, and now she probably thought I was a psycho or something. I wanted to tell her I hadn't meant anything by it, but that would just make everything more awkward.

I walked out of the Big House and started heading towards my cabin. As I walked, I did a recap of all the things that had happened to me in the past twenty-four hours:

1.Met and fought with Annabeth

2. Blew up both bronze bulls

3. Made a spout of water appear out of thin air

4. Brought Rachel, a mortal, to camp with me

5. Found out my stepdad was a half-blood, a son of Morpheus

6. Found out more half-bloods had gone to Kronos and Thalia and the Hunters were missing

7. Let Rachel capture the flag

8. Seen a half-blood no one had ever seen before walk into camp and faint at my feet

9. Had a discussion with Annabeth about temporarily selling my soul to Hades

10. Said half-blood had recognized my name and said he was supposed to fine me

I rubbed my head. My life was getting very confusing.

**Jacob's POV**

When I woke up again, my head was still hurting.

I could hear no noise, and I was still lying on the soft bed. I opened my eyes. The boy and the girl from before were gone. I was alone in the room. I tried to sit up, but my head still hurt terribly, and I was forced to lie back down again.

On the bedside table was a glass filled with caramel-colored liquid. I propped up the pillow and reached for the glass. That's when I saw that the scratches on my arms had almost completely faded. Only a few were left. I pulled up the shirt, which wasn't mine, and saw that the ones on my chest were almost gone too.

I raised the glass to my lips and took a sip. Whoa. I almost dropped the glass. It tasted like French fries- real, solid French fries, salty and crispy, like the kind I used to love before everything became such a blur, before my life got so complicated. It was awesome.

When I was finished, I put the glass back and tried to sit up again. This time, it was easier. I rose off of the bed and took a few shaky steps toward the door. My other clothes and my shoes were sitting next to it. I put my shoes on and walked out the door.

I walked down a hallway filled with doors to other rooms like mine. At the end was a staircase. With some difficulty, I climbed the stairs and went through a pair of double doors. Now I was out on a huge porch overlooking a valley surrounded by rolling hills. Greek and Roman-ish buildings were everywhere, so it looked like some modern replica of an ancient city. There were middle and high school kids running around everywhere, all with orange t-shirts that said CAMP HALF-BLOOD. Some of them appeared to have wool blankets wrapped around their legs. Weird, I thought.

I came around a corner to find a guy sitting on a chair sipping a Diet Coke. He looked like a fat drunk to me, with he bloated red face and his leopard skin shirt. As I walked up to him, he gave me a generally bored look. "So, you're awake," he said.

"Uh, yeah, I guess," I murmured, already disliking the man. "So, where am I, exactly?"

"I'd think it would be obvious. I mean, you walk all the way down here and you don't even know where you are?"

I stared at him blankly, and he sighed. "Camp Half-Blood, of course. The training camp for demigods."

I wanted to ask him what the heck demigod was, but I really didn't expect him to give me a straight answer. Just then I heard a rumble on the boards at my feet, and an older guy in a motorized wheelchair came zooming up the ramp towards us. When he saw me, he stopped, surprised. "You're awake!" he said.

"Yes," I said. "Who are you?"

He smiled. "My name is Chiron. I'm the camp activities director here."

"Oh," I said. "So this really is a camp?"

"Of course," he replied. "Camp Half-Blood."

"I see," I said. "And it's called Camp Half-Blood because…"

Chiron blinked. "You mean you don't know?"

I didn't know how to answer that. Just then a familiar kid in an orange t-shirt ran up on the porch. "Chiron!" he said.

"Percy," Chiron said. "Can I help you?"

"Well, I was in archery…"

"Here we go," said the first man.

The boy glared at him. "Anyway, I really was aiming for the target, and I guess my fingers slipped, and one of the dryads happened to be walking behind it, and well…" He suddenly noticed me. "Hey, you're awake!"

"So I've heard," I murmured. Chiron sighed and looked at Percy like he'd done this several times before.

"Percy, why don't you give our new camper here a tour of the camp, and I'll see to the dryad." He gave me a final smile and then, as I watched, his legs got taller and taller until I realized they weren't real legs at all. Chiron stepped out of the wheelchair, taking his impossibly long behind with him, until I realized that where the man's hips should have begun, there was the bottom half of a horse. Chiron was a centaur.

I stared openmouthed as Chiron galloped off across the valley. Percy turned and looked at me. "Come with me," he said. He gave the other man a final glare and then we left him and headed off the porch.

"Mr. D," he said quietly when we were out of earshot. "The camp director. He's a pain in the butt, but stay on his good side."

I was confused, but I nodded.

"How long was I out?" I asked.

He shrugged. "About a day and a half. Your scars look better."

"I guess," I replied, a little unnerved that he talked about them like they were his scars too. "So…what is this place, exactly?"

"It's a summer camp," replied Percy. "For kids who are children of the gods."

"The _what?_" I asked, staring at him.

He looked at me and sighed. "How many parents do you have?" he asked.

I was surprised by his question, but I answered, "None. I'm an orphan."

We kept walking and passed a volleyball pit, and I suddenly realized the kids from before weren't wearing blankets. Their legs were actually covered in wool, and instead of feet they had cloven hooves.

"Satyrs," I muttered.

"What?" said Percy. "Oh, yeah, they come here too. My best friend is a satyr."

"Uh, okay," I replied, deciding not to question.

"So, what were you saying?" he asked. "About your parents."

"Oh. Well, the only thing I ever knew about my mom was that she was an artist. She died when I was three. Then I went to an orphanage for a few years, but I never fit in because I always got kicked out of all my schools."

"Really?" said Percy. "Me too. What about you dad?"

I shrugged. "Never knew him." Kids were staring at me as we walked by and making me feel a little uncomfortable.

Percy noticed. "Don't mind them. They just haven't got over your little…um…entrance the other night. I'm Percy, by the way. Percy Jackson."

Suddenly, a rush of memories hit me like a wave. The hotel, the monsters, chasing me... Everything…

"Dude, are you okay?" asked Percy.

"Yeah," I replied. "Percy, can you tell me what's going on here? Why are there so many Greek buildings everywhere? Why are there satyrs and centaurs all over the place? They don't even _exist_, last time I checked."

He looked at me closely. "Look, you know the Greek gods of Olympus, from Greek mythology and all that?"

"Sure," I shrugged. "Zeus. Hades. Hermes. Those guys."

Thunder boomed in the sky, even thought there wasn't a storm cloud in sight. Percy glanced at the sky worriedly. "Yeah. Them," he said. "Well, I know you won't believe me, but the gods of Olympus existed, and still exist today, in the United States. And you are one of their children. You, Jacob Spark, are a half-blood, the son of a god."

**Keep sending those reviews, guys! This one was a little boring, I know, and it might be that way for the next couple of chapters. But keep on reading, and it'll get better, I promise.**


	7. I Get Beat By the New Kid

**Hey guys, I just want to say that I really hated the last chapter. After I had posted it I read it and pretty much threw up. So, I'd like to publicly apologize and promise that I will do better in the future. For now, here's Capítulo Siete.**

**Jacob's POV**

Percy showed me around the camp: we saw the strawberry fields, the archery range, and the sword-fighting arena. The whole time, I was debating the fact that he was completely nuts with him.

"You're crazy."

"No I'm not."

"You've got to be."

"Well, I'm not."

"Have you ever experienced wild hallucinations before?"

"_Look,_" said Percy with annoyance, "I'm not going to make you believe me, but it's true. You are the son of an Olympian. Probably your dad, by what you told me."

"What are you talking about? The gods don't even _exist._ They're myths, stories, legends. They were made up hundreds of years ago."

He waved his hand. "Believe what you want. But the gods do exist. And your father is one of them."

"What, you know him?"

He shrugged. "Probably. I've met most of the Olympians before."

"This is so insane," I murmured, looking at the sky.

He turned to look at me. "Jacob, look around you. What do you see?"

I looked at the camp. "A twisted version of a summer camp full of nutcases like _you_ who believe in the Greek gods?"

He rolled his eyes. "Open your eyes! There are satyrs and wood nymphs running around everywhere, there are Greek buildings all over the place…our camp director is the god of wine, for crying out loud!"

I cocked my head. "What?"

He blinked at me. "You didn't know? That guy drinking the Diet Coke, Mr. D. It stands for Dionysus. He's the wine god."

I almost laughed. "What?" I said. "You expect me to believe that guy is a god? That's the most pathetic attempt you've made yet."

Percy's eyes widened. "I told you, don't mess with him," he said. "He can be a little…dangerous, if you're not careful."

We kept walking and found the cabins. They were twelve of the most unalike buildings I had ever seen. The ones at the front were magnificent; cabin one was huge and shimmered different lightning bolt patterns in the sunlight. Two was white with thin columns and was garnished with peacocks.

Percy tried to explain to me that the cabin you were in depended on the god your parent was. We passed by his cabin, cabin three, which was low and solid, and seemed to be made out of seashells.

"Doesn't look like many are in there," I commented.

He shook his head. "I'm the only half-blood in there. My half-brother, Tyson, is a Cyclops, and there's another one of my friends who's staying in there too."

"Who's her godly parent?"

His expression hardened. "No one. She's mortal."

"Then why is she-"

"Oh, look, here we are. Cabin eleven."

Cabin eleven was the oldest of all the cabins, and it had a caduceus painted on the front. "Hermes," I murmured, and Percy nodded. "So I'm a son of Hermes?"

"Maybe," he replied. "I don't know."

"So you just pick people's parents by guessing?"

He glared at me, obviously getting tired of my questions. He opened the door of cabin eleven and looked inside.

The kids in there were so crammed I was shocked that they had even enough room to breath. All the bunks were taken, and sleeping bags were laid out on just about every spot on the floor. Kids from eight to eighteen were crammed in there, talking, dozing, doing whatever. They all looked up at us as we came in.

"Jacob Spark, meet cabin eleven," said Percy, brandishing his arm. "He's a new camper," he told the crowd.

"Regular or undetermined?" a girl at the front asked.

"Take a wild guess," replied Percy, and all the kids sighed.

"What does that mean?" I asked Percy.

"Hermes takes in all unclaimed half-bloods," he replied, "You'll stay until you're determined."

Two guys walked up. "Hi," said the first one. They looked almost exactly alike. "I'm Travis, and this is Conner. We're the counselors for this cabin."

"Okay," I said. I strolled into the cabin and stared at the sea of faces coolly. Gradually everyone broke up and started doing their own thing again. Travis and Conner nodded at me and then walked away.

I shrugged and turned around. For some reason, Percy was still glaring at me. "What?" I asked.

"Nothing," he said. "Come on, we've got to find Annabeth."

We started walking past the cabins and I said, "Okay, so let's pretend for a second that I believe you, and that the gods do exist and all that. Shouldn't they be in Greece?"

"No," he said. "The gods move with the flame of the West."

"Ooookay," I said, "Thank you. That clears it up."

He rolled his eyes. "You know Western civilization, and all that? It's an actual force. Chiron can explain it to you better than I can. The gods moved as the west did, to all kinds of different countries, centuries ago. And now the west is here, so the gods are here. And so are we."

"Okay, I can roll with this," I said. "So the gods go around having kids with mortals and they come here?"

"Most of them, yeah," said Percy. "A lot of times, they get killed before they get the chance to come."

And on that cheery note, we went looking for whoever he was talking about.

We walked up to a huge rock-climbing wall that consisted of two rocks that clashed together and poured lava if you didn't get up fast enough. As I watched, a blonde girl made her way up to the top of the wall and rang a huge bell that hung on top of the wall. She got a round of applause from the campers below her.

"That's Annabeth," said Percy. I glanced at him. He had a weird look on his face, like he was arguing with himself about something.

That's when I said what I knew was the last thing he wanted me to say. "You guys going out?"

Oh, man, I had done it. "What?" he said, jumping away from me. "I mean, no, we're not- we're just- I mean, like we would ever…" Then his voice faded out altogether and he was left just staring at the ground, muttering to himself.

"Oh, okay, that makes sense," I said reasonably. Percy didn't seem to hear me. I smiled. I didn't plan on telling them that I had seen them the other night on my bed and I had just gasped like that to get their attention. The campers below the wall had dispersed and now Annabeth was jogging up to us.

"Hi," I said brightly. "Percy and I were just talking about you."

"What? We weren't- I mean-" Then he gave up. "Look, I've got sword-fighting with Apollo. Will you give him the rest of the tour?"

She shrugged. "Sure," she said. "Later, Seaweed Brain."

Seaweed Brain? Oh, give me a break. She even had a pet name for him.

Percy walked away, shaking his head. I turned to Annabeth. "Let's go," she said. "I'm Annabeth Chase, by the way."

"Yeah, you told me before. I'm Jacob. Jacob Spark."

We were heading towards the woods when a guy about sixteen with curly brown hair and shaggy goat legs trotted up to us.

"Annabeth, hey," he said casually. "Mind if I walk with you guys?"

"Not at all," said Annabeth. "Jacob, this is Grover, the satyr who's responsible for finding the wild god. Grover, this is Jacob Spark."

"Hi," said Grover with a smile. I smiled back and we shook hands.

"So, the wild god, huh?" I said. "Impressive."

He blushed. "It was a group effort."

"Don't listen to him," said Annabeth with a grin. "We never would have found him if it hadn't been for him."

"Who?"

"Pan," Grover replied. "The god of the wild."

"Oh, okay," I said. We had reached the woods. I could hear strange noises coming from the inside. They gave me chills, and we quickly left.

"So how long to I have to be in the Hermes cabin, exactly?" I asked as we headed back towards the lake.

"Until you're determined," said Annabeth, surprised. "Didn't Percy tell you?"

"Yeah, but what does that mean exactly?"

We came to the lake and sat down by a tree in the shade. Grover watched the canoes floating out on the lake while Annabeth answered my question. "You can't just pick who your Olympian parent is. You have to be chosen by them…claimed by them. Sometimes, it takes a long time to happen. A lot of times not at all."

I was surprised. "You mean there are kids here who don't even know who their god parent is?"

Grover nodded. "The gods are always busy, and sometimes they don't have time to claim their children. Some of them could really care less."

So that was why the Hermes cabin was so packed, I thought. It wasn't just Hermes kids. There were campers who had no idea who their mom or dad was. Would I be one of those kids, I wondered? Shoved away by my dad because he didn't really care that I was his son or not? "That's not fair," I said aloud.

They both nodded. "The gods aren't always fair. In fact, they hardly ever are," said Annabeth. She seemed to be able to read my mind. "Don't worry. No one's ever seen a kid claimed on their first day at camp. Be patient and work hard, that's my advice. Then your dad ought to notice you."

"And please don't be another son of Ares," Grover added. They both laughed, and I smiled too. We kept talking for about half an hour, them explaining to me about the gods, and monsters, and things like that. Somehow, these guys were a lot easier to talk to than Percy. He just seemed sort of hostile for some reason. I was about to ask Annabeth and Grover about it when suddenly Percy himself came around the other side of the tree. He saw the three of us smiling and laughing, and his eyes narrowed.

"Wash up. Almost dinner time," he said, staring at me with a mixture of anger and suspicion.

"Oh, yeah, I'd better go take a shower," said Annabeth, hopping up. "Nice meeting you, Jacob." She gave me a final smile and jogged off.

"Well, see you guys," I said, getting up and running off toward the cabins. I still didn't get why Percy was so mad at me all the time. Surely he wasn't jealous of me? I mean, they were his friends and…

Man, I was hungry. What was for dinner? Maybe pizza. Yeah. Pizza is good.

--

**Percy's POV**

The following week at Camp Half-Blood could be described in one word: normal. And that was what bugged me. It was _too _normal.

I mean, don't get me wrong, it's good to lay back and just have a normal week at summer camp once in a while. But I felt like I should be doing something. I mean, Kronos was out there preparing for war against the gods, and I was just here doing nothing.

We had normal training. Chiron started a new aerial combat class with the pegasi. I had sword fighting every day. My archery was just as bad as ever. I hung out with Grover most of the time. Annabeth was avoiding me again, and I figured this time she might never come out of her shell. I tried to talk to her a couple of times, but she just acted like she had something to do and she walked away.

Rachel refused to come out of my cabin. The arrival of Jacob had postponed talk about her, but I knew it wasn't over. For one thing, the entire Ares cabin, Clarisse included, would walk past and joke, "Hey, Prissy? Where's your little girlfriend? We've got something for her." Then they would all laugh. I didn't know if they were joking or not, but I kept my eyes open. Tyson brought her food and kept her company sometimes, but we both agreed that at some point she was going to have to come out of that cabin.

And then there was Jacob.

There was only one resemblance I could find between him and myself when I had first come to camp: no one could figure out who his dad was. But it wasn't because he wasn't good at anything, like me. To put it simply, Jacob excelled in everything he did.

Chiron announced he was a natural archer. By Wednesday only the fastest wood nymphs could outrun him. His javelins were perfectly thrown. He scaled the rock-climbing wall with apparent ease. Basically, he was good at everything.

Now, you'd think everyone would hate him because he was so great, right? Wrong.

Everyone liked him because he was just likeable. He was a laid back, easygoing, funny, clever, and altogether cool kind of guy. Even the Ares campers were okay with him…at least, they didn't give him the "initiation" they had given me.

I tried to ignore the fact that I was the only one who didn't like Jacob, but it was true. I mean, can you blame me? He's just so…perfect.

The following Friday, I had a sword fighting lesson with the Hermes kids. I felt confident. Finally, something I was better at than Jacob.

We started off with the dummies, me teaching them different moves and giving them pointers. Then we split up into pairs and practiced sparring. As Luke had done with me, I paired up with Jacob since it was his first time, although he had plenty of friends who he could have paired up with.

I taught him a few basic moves first, and he seemed to understand well enough. "Okay," I said. "Now we keep going until one of us is dead, figuratively."

His eyes widened a little, but he nodded. "Got it."

We faced each other. I studied his blade. It was a little shorter than Riptide, which gave me the advantage. His eyes were determined, and he was taking in my every move.

We circled each other, and suddenly I attacked. He parried my first few blows with surprising skill, then he turned his sword in a complete circle and I was forced to stumble. Then he came at me with a left swing.

My original plan was to feign a block, then quickly change to a parry and come back on the offensive. But Jacob apparently saw the move coming. He ignored my block completely and turned his arm so that it was now an overhand swing. I was so surprised I didn't even attempt to parry, and so I forced to jump to the side to avoid the blow.

All right, pretty boy, you want to fight for real? Fine, I thought. I lunged at him with a long string of blows. He managed to block each one, but he looked battered. On the last blow, he caught me at his shoulder with a parry, then he spun and switched to his left hand to block my next strike. He _switched hands!_ It had taken me years to learn that, and I still hadn't mastered it. He continued fighting with his left hand for a minute, then he quickly changed back to his right.

The rest of the class was finished and had come to watch. Oh, no. I was _not_ going to let him humiliate me in front of everyone. I pressed him harder, coming at every angle I knew possible. He calmly and determinedly countered me, and together we performed a wild, furious dance in the middle of the arena, each waiting for the other to mess up.

Finally, something changed. As our swords crashed together once more, he twisted with the hilt of his blade and managed to slacken my grip considerably. He quickly seized his chance and turned his entire body to meet me with a powerful side cut.

I weakly raised my sword to counter, but as our swords clashed, his sword suddenly flashed and I felt something shoot up my arm and ricochet through my body. It was almost like an electric shock. I dropped my sword and found a sword point at my throat.

We both stood, panting, as the rest of the group stared openmouthed at us. Then I heard a sudden voice call "Percy!"

Annabeth was standing at the edge of the arena. She looked as surprised as everyone else but she said. "Come with me. Travis, Conner, you too. Chiron's called an emergency meeting. He says he's got bad news from Olympus."


	8. We All Learn to Hate Irony

**Just want to let you all know, I made some minor adjustments to the last chapter. It's not really worth going back and looking at unless you just really want to, in which case be my guest. Sorry I haven't updated in a while, and this chapter's a little fast, but enjoy it anyway!**

I slowly walked out of the arena along with Travis, Conner, and Annabeth. I was completely shocked and angry. I had got my butt whooped by a guy who hadn't even picked up a sword an hour ago! The thought of it made me burn with rage. I wished Jacob Spark would get blasted off the face of the Earth.

My thoughts were interrupted as I heard a sound that made me angrier. I turned to find that Annabeth was laughing. The Stoll boys were smirking too. "What's so funny?" I demanded.

"Nothing," Annabeth replied, still laughing. "It's just weird that you would get beat by Jacob."

"It's not funny," I grumbled, turning away, which only made them laugh harder. "What does Chiron want to talk to us about?"

Her smile faded. "I don't know," she said. "But it's something bad. He was really pale when he told me and he looked…scared."

That was surprising. Chiron being afraid was like Dionysus handing out lollipops to the campers.

We walked into the dining pavilion to find everyone else already there. Silena Beauregard sat at her table, and she winked at me as I walked in and made me blush, although I didn't really know why. Since Lee Fletcher had been killed last summer, Cardinna Reeves had taken his place as head of the Apollo cabin. Pollux sat talking with Beckendorf, and Clarisse was pacing in a line looking gloomy. Chiron was at the head table, and he greeted us as we walked in, but I could tell there was someone else missing. Finally, it came to me.

"Chiron, where's Mr. D?"

He looked grave. "I shall get to it, child." He banged his hoof on the floor. "Everyone please be quiet." Everyone turned sat down and turned to look at him. "I bring grave news from Olympus, I'm afraid."

We were silent as we waited in anticipation. Finally Chiron sighed. "It seems that Artemis has gone to the Titan's side in order to get her Hunters back."

For several moments, there was silence as we all took in the news. Then suddenly there was a chorus of "WHAT?" and everyone started shouting at once. I was one of the loudest. I had met Artemis before, and I knew the goddess would _never _join the Titan's side. She'd seen firsthand the evil of Kronos, and it had cost her the lives of one of her Hunters, Zoë Nightshade. That Artemis would go to them was beyond belief.

Chiron had to hit his hoof against the floor several times to silence us again. "I know this is hard to believe, but unfortunately, it's true. Artemis herself spoke with her brother, Apollo, before she left and told him the news."

"But why?" protested Cardinna. "Artemis wouldn't do that!"

Chiron stared hard at her. "She seemed to feel that the gods didn't care that the Hunters were missing, that they had more important things to worry about. No doubt Kronos also tormented her with nightmares of them injured or dead. Whatever the case, we must focus on the matter at hand: the goddess of the hunt has joined Kronos, who once again has a prophecy child in his possession."

"So it was Luke who kidnapped the Hunters," I growled, clenching my fists.

"It appears so," replied Chiron. "And now that he has Thalia, he could convince her to break her vow to Artemis and become sixteen, and then we could be in very big trouble."

"Then what do we do?" asked Silena.

"Yes, I was just getting to that," replied Chiron. "Artemis mentioned to Apollo that if a group of heroes could rescue the Hunters, she would return to the gods' side."

"Doesn't she already have the Hunters, though?" asked Travis.

"Not exactly," said Chiron. "Kronos merely offered her the Hunters' freedom to convince her to join his side. He still needs the Hunters as a bargaining chip, though, or Artemis might return to the gods' side."

"So Artemis doesn't really want to be with the Titans, she just want her Hunters back?" said Cardinna.

"Yes, child," said Chiron. Cardinna looked relieved.

Clarisse stood up now, her dark eyes glinting with determination. "So, is that it? We need a quest to find the Hunters and convince Artemis to rejoin the gods' side?"

"That is the general idea, yes," replied Chiron. "The gods have called an emergency meeting on Olympus and are now discussing what to do. Then again, without Artemis there, it's probably not going so well. However, a quest is the most reasonable option at this point."

We started murmuring amongst ourselves. "Who will lead the quest?" called Annabeth finally.

No one really had an answer. I really wanted to lead it, but I was afraid to speak up for a few reasons: one, I had led and/or gone on four quests before, and I was afraid I might have exceeded my limit or something. Two, I was just plain afraid. It seemed kind of stupid for me to go out into the world when Luke spent every waking moment of his life trying to kill me. And the final reason was that if I went, I would have to take at least two of my friends with me, and I didn't want to put them in danger.

Still, Thalia _was_ my friend, and although I didn't love the rest of the Hunters, I still wanted to help them. Plus, Artemis was one goddess we needed back on our side again. If I could help to make it happen, I wanted to do it.

Chiron was looking around at us, as if prodding someone to volunteer to lead. Finally, Beckendorf spoke up and raised his hand. "I volunteer…" He suddenly pointed his finger at me, "PERCY to lead the quest."

Good old Beck. I was about to protest, but the others were murmuring in agreement, and Chiron was looking at me. "Well, Percy? Will you lead the quest?"

I shifted uncomfortably. "Don't you think it's a little dangerous for me to do it at this point?"

"Yes, yes I do," Chiron replied, "But danger is something a hero often has to prevail, if you haven't noticed." There was an edge of challenge in his voice, and I could tell he wanted me to lead this quest too.

Everyone was looking at me. I bowed my head for a moment, then I slowly looked up. "All right," I said. "I'll do it."

I got several claps on the back and a few "Good luck"s from various people, some more sarcastic than encouraging, and then Chiron said, "Very well then, Percy. You must go and consult the Oracle. Assuming you return with your mind still intact, we will talk further."

--

I made my way across camp towards the Big House, getting several questions from a bunch of campers, but I didn't explain things to anyone except Tyson and Grover, who accompanied me to the farmhouse.

"This is so terrible," moaned Grover, crunching on an apple mournfully as we walked. "Artemis, going to the Titans' side. When the satyrs find out, no one's going to want to help me anymore."

I felt for the guy, but I was too preoccupied to say anything. I mean, I was excited to lead another quest, but this one seemed far more dangerous than any I had gone on before. I wasn't sure if I would make it back alive.

"It will be okay, Goat Boy," said Tyson, putting his arm around him and giving him a hug that almost snapped him in half. They reluctantly left me at the porch of the Big House and I walked inside.

I went up the stairs, nervous. The Oracle was a mystical spirit that lived in a mummy in the attic. It gave ominous prophecies that always came true, although not always in the way people expected. I was afraid of what it was going to tell me about this quest.

I walked up to the trapdoor that led to the attic, pulled the cord and slowly ascended the ladder. The usual mildewy smell greeted me as I came up into the attic. Souvenirs from past quests were up against the walls, and in front of me sat the gruesome mummy in her chair. I slowly walked up to her, anticipation clawing at my stomach.

Suddenly, the Oracle sat up and green mist snaked its way out of the her mouth, making its way around the floor. A chilling voice rang through my mind: _I am the spirit of Delphi, speaker of the prophecies of Phoebus Apollo, slayer of the mighty Python. Approach, seeker, and ask._

I gulped, and then slowly said, "What can I do to help the Hunters?"

For a moment there was silence. Then suddenly the mist formed a familiar image: all of the ones I cared about, sitting in a semi circle. I saw my mom, Poseidon, Grover, Annabeth, Tyson, and even Paul. They looked at me, but they didn't look particularly happy.

Suddenly, they began to move down the line, each of their mouths moving, but instead of their own voices, I heard only the hissing voice of the Oracle.

_Seven shall go to the Mount of Despair, _rasped my mom.

_Six with Wild's blessing, three kin of three lairs_, Poseidon said.

_One must be lost to achieve your true goal, _Grover whispered.

_Love shall decide the fate of one's soul, _Annabeth hissed.

_One must become two, or all will be lost, _Tyson rasped.

_And the battle will finally end, at a cost, _finished Paul.

With that, the smoke began to seep back into the Oracle's mouth. "Wait!" I called. "Who will be lost? How will the battle end?"

But, as usual, it ignored my pleas. Its head slowly tipped back and reclined against the wall, and then it moved no more.

--

I slowly came back into the pavilion. "Percy, good," said Chiron. Everyone saw me and sat down again.

I took a deep breath. "I got the prophecy," I said. "I'll go on this quest to find the Hunters."

Everyone was silent. "The prophecy, then," said Chiron finally. "Let's hear it."

I sat down. "Let's see…_Seven shall go to the Mount of Despair._ _Six with Wild's blessing, three kin of three lairs._"

I paused to let anyone comment. "Seven?" said Silena. "That's huge. Chiron, has anyone ever taken that many before?"

Chiron shook his head. "Not that I've heard of."

"_Six with Wild's blessing_…" said Annabeth slowly.

"Go on, child," Chiron said to me.

I looked down. "_One must be lost to achieve your true goal," _I paused. I was a little reluctant to share the next line, but in the end I said, _"Love shall decide the fate of one's soul." _Silena looked thrilled. I glared at her.

"One must be lost…that doesn't sound good," said Beckendorf. Well, gee, thanks, Becky. It's your fault I've got to go on this quest in the first place.

"Ooh, love!" sighed Silena, and then she looked between me and Annabeth with a knowing smile. I really wanted to punch her, but Chiron said, "Is that all?"

"No. _One must become two, or all will be lost…And the battle will finally end, at a cost._"

Everyone was silent. Then Chiron said, "Well, let's go back to the second line, because that's the one I'm concerned about."

_Six with Wild's blessing, three kin of the three lairs_, I repeated.

"So, seven must go, and six of them have to…" began Connor.

"It's us," said Annabeth suddenly, looking at me. "Wild's blessing. That's the ones who found Pan. He blessed us, remember?"

I nodded, remembering when Pan had blessed us in the cave before he had given up his spirit. "But Nico didn't get blessed," I said. "Why would it say 'six'?"

"It was probably referring to when he turned into mist and went in us," she replied. "Remember? He went into Nico too."

I looked at Chiron. "You knew the Oracle would say this," I said. "That's why you ordered Rachel be brought to camp too."

"So you _admit _she's not a half-blood!" exclaimed Clarisse. I ignored her.

Chiron shrugged. "I had my suspicions," was all he said.

"Okay," I said, "But I don't get the _three kin of three lairs _part…"

"The Three Lairs," said Chiron, "Were a term used by the British when the gods lived in England. They stood for Olympus, the Underworld, and Poseidon's kingdom. To put it in short, the Big Three."

"So you're saying that…a kid from each of the Big Three has to go on this quest?" said Pollux.

"It appears so," Chiron replied.

"What?" I exclaimed. "That doesn't even make sense. The only Big Three kids in existence are me, Nico, and Thalia, and she's who were trying to save! Is the Oracle stupid or something?"

No one had an answer, although everyone looked as frustrated as I felt. Chiron, on the other hand, looked thoughtful. "It seems," he said finally, "That we will have to wait."

"Wait?" I shouted. "We can't wait! Kronos could be tormenting Thalia right now! We have to-"

"Percy!" said Chiron. I reluctantly backed down. "I don't know why the Oracle said this, but it must be true. Three kin of each of the Big Three must go on this quest. It would be extremely unwise to go on the quest without following the Oracle's advice, and since there is no child of Zeus present at the moment, we will simply have to wait. This meeting is over. Back to your cabins!"

"Chiron, it's dinner time," Cardinna said. "There's no reason to-"

"I SAID BACK TO YOUR CABINS!" Chiron shouted. Everyone quickly got up and left.

I was burning with rage- at the Oracle, at Chiron, and at myself. Why had I agreed to go on this stupid quest? "I am so going to die," I murmured.

"That's the spirit," Travis said from a few feet away.

"Don't worry," said Annabeth quietly. "If the Oracle said that, there must be a reason."

Looking at her made me think of the prophecy. _Love shall decide the fate of one's soul._ It sort of bothered me that she had said that line in the Oracle's vision, although I knew it didn't really mean anything.

Right?

The rest of the day was slow and uneventful. The cabin leaders delivered the news to everyone else, and everyone was depressed at dinner. Then we had what I think was the saddest excuse for a campfire that I've ever seen at Camp Half-Blood. After that, I slumped back to my cabin, where Tyson was tinkering with some metal parts and Rachel was staring at the ceiling. Tyson hadn't been really concerned about the fact that we were going on another quest, but Rachel had gone back into depression, just when we were persuading her to come outside.

I slumped onto my bed and closed my eyes, trying to push away Jacob, the quest, the Oracle, and our problem to the back of my mind.

"Time to wait," I said miserably.

I didn't have to wait long. Five days later we had our final quest member.


	9. The Final Quest Member Arrives

**Thanks for your reviews! I think the story is finally going to start coming along in this chapter, so please stick with me you guys!**

**Percy's POV**

I was in the ocean when it happened.

The sea seemed like the only place I could escape to these days, a place to think about everything that was happening. I could breathe underwater, and will the currents to push me across the deep as I pleased. The water also cleared my mind, and allowed me to think better.

Fortunately, it also heightened my sense of hearing.

I was swimming along on the bottom of Long Island Sound, allowing the cool water to ease my troubles and relax me, when I heard commotion coming from the shore. People were running around in panic at the camp. I immediately began to swim to the surface.

No sooner had I emerged than Grover ran up to me, his eyes wild and panicky. "Get your armor!" he cried. "The borders are under attack!"

_Not again, _I groaned inside. This was the second time since I'd arrived at camp. The first time had been a pack of wild, hairy men with rams' horns, something that even I'd never seen in my days as a half-blood. I dreaded what was awaiting me this time.

I ran into my cabin to find Tyson already in his armor and getting me mine. "Hurry, Percy!" he said. He tossed me my other shin guard and then sprinted out the door.

I quickly donned the armor and started out the door until I realized something: my helmet was missing. _Where did I put it? _I searched frantically on the floor. Nothing. Then I suddenly realized I had left it in Jacob's room in the Big House on the night of Capture the Flag. I cried out in frustration and tore toward the farmhouse.

I found Mr. D on the porch, sipping Diet Coke and flipping through his wine magazine. "Do you even care that we're under attack?" I yelled at him.

He waved his hand dismissively without looking up. "So a couple of campers get maimed. It's no skin off my nose."

I just glared and ran past him. Making my way down to Jacob's old room, I quickly grabbed my helmet off the floor. I was almost out the door when suddenly I saw Jacob's old clothes folded up next to the door. It wouldn't have bothered me, except that out of the corner of my eye I saw a bit of green hanging out of one of his pants pockets. I stooped down and pulled it out. It was a green plastic card, and my eyes widened as I recognized the words printed on it: LOTUS HOTEL CASHCARD.

"Oh, no," I whispered. Then I suddenly remembered the attack and I ran out the door, pocketing the card as I went.

--

**Jacob's POV**

I was seriously excited.

There was no stopping me from participating in this fight, not since I had beat Percy in a sword fight last week. The last attack, I had been forced to watch from the valley as Clarisse and a few older campers took the ram-guys that were attacking the borders. But beating Percy had given me an aura of respect and admiration, and I was happy when Annabeth told me to get my armor on and get ready to fight after the horn was sounded.

Now, I was on the crest of Half-Blood Hill, watching my foes approach. They were strange women with the upper bodies of humans, and lower bodies that resembled dragons. "_Dracanae,_" Clarisse had said with a curse when we had come up the hill. We stood with about fifteen other campers donned in the same bronze armor, including Percy, Annabeth, Tyson, and the Stoll brothers, watching as the _dracanae _began ascending the hill. Peleus the dragon was wrapped protectively around the tree where the Fleece sat and growling at our opponents.

Suddenly Clarisse cried, "Heroes, to arms!" With battle cries we charged down the hill to meet the snakelike women. I gripped my sword tightly, admiring the way the celestial bronze caught the sunlight. I didn't wear a shield; I found that it increased my speed and as long as I kept my head in the game, I didn't need one.

I approached the first _dracanae_ I saw. She wielded a long poleaxe, the blade sharp enough to slice through flesh like jelly. She gave me a snarl and swung at me. I ducked and flicked the axe away with my sword. Quickly moving in, I sliced the pole in half as she came in for another swing and then gutted her. With a wail, she exploded into yellow dust.

"'Atta boy, Jacob!" called Connor from next to me. Just then, a monster came up behind him and raised her sword.

"Look out!" I shouted, pointing. He turned and barely raised his shield to block the blow. Then a couple of Apollo archers shot her in chinks in her armor and she quickly disintegrated, but not before another one came up behind Connor and engaged him again. I ran over to help him, but I was too late. The monster managed to get through his defense and jab him in the shoulder with her spear. He fell to the ground, blood gushing freely from the wound.

"Connor!" I said. The _dracanae _noticed me and sneered. "Goodbye, little one!" she hissed, raising her javelin.

I dodged the blow and knocked the javelin out of her hands. Then I raised my sword and quickly maimed her. She vaporized before she could utter a sound.

I bent down and examined Connor. His wound was deep and wide, and he was barely breathing. I burned with rage at the monsters that had done this to him. Connor and Travis had become my good friends over the last couple of weeks. I was one of the only ones who could tell them apart. I couldn't stand seeing him hurt like this.

What happened next I could never explain; it was like a dam suddenly broke inside me, releasing a flood of energy that filled me with power. With a cry, I raised my sword, and lightning tore down from the heavens and struck the tip. It broke into individual tendrils of electricity that struck each of the remaining monsters, destroying them instantly. When the energy faded from me, there were clumps of yellow powder all over the hill and a bunch of bronze-clad warriors staring at me in awe.

I didn't know what to say, because I was just as surprised as they were. Then suddenly something flashed above my head. I looked up. Swirling above me was a strange symbol: a golden storm cloud with a lightning bolt generating from it. As I watched, the symbol faded just as quickly as it had come.

"It is determined," said Chiron's voice from the crest of the hill. He was standing there with all the other campers behind him. One by one, each of them kneeled, looking up at me with awe and amazement, even Percy.

Then Chiron said the last thing I expected. "He is the son of the Lord of the Sky. The final quest member has been found. Hail, Jacob Spark, son of Zeus."

--

After that, the campers were a mass of confusion. Everyone was walking up, congratulating me, accusing me, or just continuing to stare at me unwaveringly. Everyone wanted to talk to me, but unfortunately we had wounded to tend to.

While the Apollo campers began examining the hurt campers, Chiron led me away toward the Big House. I resisted at first, because I wanted to make sure Connor was alright, but the lightning stunt had taken all the energy out of me, and in the end I just followed him.

One by one, the members of the new quest began filing in behind us: Percy, Annabeth, Grover, Tyson, and that mortal girl that stayed in Percy's cabin. That surprised me, because as far as I knew she had never left cabin three since camp started.

We met Mr. D on the porch, flipping through a wine magazine like he didn't even care that we'd just been attacked. He looked up dully at us and said sarcastically, "Well, if it isn't the hero of the day."

"Now, Mr. D," said Chiron, "That's no way to talk to your new brother."

Dionysus just grunted and went back to his magazine. We all sat down at the table and stared at our feet in an uncomfortable silence. Finally, Tyson looked up, suddenly excited. "Is this the quiet mouse game?" he said. "I like quiet mouse." Then he suddenly clamped his hand over his mouth in horror.

As shocked an confused as I was, I had to suppress a smile. I saw the others trying not to laugh too, except Percy, who just glared at me. Then Chiron said, "Well, Jacob, we have to talk about this. I have many questions, such as-"

"How can you be a son of Zeus?" interrupted Percy angrily. "How did you find this camp in the first place? And maybe you could tell me why I found THIS-" he pulled a green plastic card out of his pocket that I recognized all too well, "in the pocket of your old clothes!"

I sensed surprise from everyone around the table. "Perhaps it would be wise," said Chiron, "If you told us your background, Jacob."

I sighed. I had been reluctant to share my past with anyone while I was at camp, because it was sort of personal and not something I shared with everyone. But I felt like it needed to be done. I sighed. "Okay, hear goes," I said. Everyone listened patiently.

"I was born in Los Angeles fourteen years ago. Like I told Percy, the only thing I ever knew about my mom was that she was an artist. She tried her best to take care of me after my dad…Zeus, I guess…left her. After she died, when I was two, I was put into an orphanage, where I grew up. It was nice enough, but I felt out of place, because I had dyslexia and ADHD and I made terrible grades. When I was four, I got in a fight with another kid at the orphanage. I punched him, and he said it felt like a shock was going through his body. That's when I gave myself the last name Spark.

"One night, a bunch of kids were talking about me behind my back. They said I was never going to amount to anything and that I would live in the streets for the rest of my life." I tried not to let my voice break.

"That night I ran. I knew I didn't belong at that orphanage. I decided to run away to Denver, where all the runaway kids went. It started out good. I made it all the way to Vegas. But then I found this…hotel."

"The Lotus Hotel and Casino," Annabeth said, going misty-eyed.

I nodded, wondering how in the world she could have possibly known that. "The hotel was amazing. They had everything I could ever dream of, and it was all free. I planned to stay there for the rest of my life. But after a while, I realized I couldn't. I kept thinking about the outside world, and I sort began to miss a life that wasn't so _perfect. _

"So, a few weeks ago, I left. I can't explain why I did it. It was almost like this voice was calling me away, telling me I had to get out. So I walked out the front doors, and there I was in Las Vegas again."

"I started to make for Denver. But then I met this guy on the street one day. He bought me a hamburger and told me about a summer camp for kids like me. He said I ought to go there, and for some reason, I listened to him. He got me a ride to New York- although I don't really remember what it was- and then I was headed for here. Camp Half-Blood.

"You just walked out of the Lotus Hotel?" said Grover in awe. "How? It was so…amazing."

"Children of the Big Three have a stronger resistance to those kind of things than other mortals or half-bloods," Chiron explained. "They can turn away from it easier."

Annabeth nodded. "That would explain why Percy was the first one to know something was up with the hotel. And why Bianca wasn't really surprised that that subway station hadn't been there when she and Nico lived in DC."

"Wait," I said. "You guys have been to that hotel?"

"Years ago," said Grover, "When we went on our first quest together."

"Which brings us to a pretty big question-" said Percy. They all looked at me, and I knew they were all thinking the same thing.

"Jacob, when were you born?" Chiron asked.

I was quiet for a minute, struggling to remember. Then, "1928."

Everyone gasped, even Mr. D. "You do realize that means you've been alive for eighty years?" Annabeth said.

"Well, yeah, but…I mean, I've never really thought about it." It was just dawning on me how long I had been around. _It's the twenty-first century!_

"It's your Big Three resistance," said Chiron, reading my mind. "That's why you weren't surprised until now by your age."

"This is so crazy," I said. "How could I have lived for eighty years as a fourteen-year-old?"

"The Lotus Hotel is magic," Percy answered. "You go in there, and you never age unless you leave."

We were quiet while I took in this news. Then Chiron said, "This man who told you about Camp Half-Blood…do you remember what he looked like?"

"I couldn't tell you," I said. "He wore a hood all the time. I thought I saw his face once, but…" I shook my head. "I really can't remember."

"It's all right, child," Chiron assured me. "What happened after that?"

"I headed for this place," I said, "But it wasn't easy. Monsters attacked me the entire way there. The night I came here, I had just escaped a pack of hellhounds. I managed to make it over the property line. Then I saw you guys coming towards me and…I blacked out."

"So you had no idea you were a half-blood?" asked Grover. I shook my head.

"Enough chat," said Chiron. "We must concentrate on the matter at hand. We have all the members of our quest present, aside from Nico, who I have spoken to."

"You've talked to Nico?" asked Percy surprised.

Chiron nodded. "He has said he'll be arriving at camp first thing tomorrow. You all have until then to prepare for this quest. Remember, now, that this is the most important quest in the last century. The quest specifically mentions that someone will be lost, but we don't know how many will come back. I suggest you all make your farewells before leaving." With that, he rose. "Jacob, may I speak with you privately?" he said.

I nodded. "Okay," I said.

"The rest of you, begin preparing," said Chiron. "You leave tomorrow for Mount Tam."

He got up and went inside the Big House. As I followed him, I thought I heard Mr. D say, "Well, this ought to be fun."


	10. Mr D Wishes Us Luck

**The quest begins…**

**Percy's POV**

The next morning, the camp was abuzz with activity.

I had Iris-messaged my mom and Paul the night before, and told them about everything that had happened. They had listened and wished me luck on the quest, but unfortunately that was all they could do. That night when I had gone to bed, I dreamed for the first time since I'd arrived at Camp Half-Blood.

I saw a familiar image: I was standing at the entrance of a black pit that I knew stretched down endlessly. Tartarus. Then suddenly I heard the laugh of Kronos, only now it sounded much stronger than I had ever heard it before, and this time, it wasn't coming from the pit.

_Ah, our little hero, departing on his most daring quest yet, _Kronos chuckled. _Little do you know that it will all be in vain._

I tried to tell him to shut up, but my voice wouldn't work, nor could I move. Kronos laughed even more. _I do enjoy occasionally coming back to my old dwelling. Know it well, Perseus, for after I have taken power once more, I shall cast you, along with your father and uncles, into it to suffer eternal torment. Hmm…perhaps you would like to see my new throne?_

Suddenly I was on top of Mount Tam, the Mountain of Despair. A huge, ornate throne was set against the wall in front of me. It was interwoven with gold and jewels, and on it were carvings of the various gods being killed and tortured. On the throne sat none other than my nemesis, Luke Castellan. But I knew it wasn't Luke. For one thing, his normally blue eyes were gold, and they glowed with malice. He was dressed in a black and gold shirt, black pants, and a flowing black cape. His infamous scythe, which had once been Luke's sword, Backbiter, rested against the throne. The scar on his face glowed evilly. It was Kronos, who had taken over Luke's body last summer.

He smiled wickedly at me. "Do you like it?" he asked in his half-Luke, half-Kronos voice, brandishing his hands around the mountaintop. "I nearly worked the telekhines to death preparing it for me. Ah, but it was worth it."

He began to pace in a circle around me, talking as he walked. "So, you must be worried about this new quest, Percy. With Artemis on my side, I will be near unstoppable. But do you really think that you can save the Hunters? I have my greatest warrior guarding them constantly. If you ever want to save them, you will have to kill him first." He laughed, and I shivered as I thought about who- or what- Kronos's greatest warrior might be.

I sudden thought struck me. What if Annabeth had joined the Hunters? She would have been kidnapped just like everyone else. And I didn't think I'd be able to live with that.

"Yes, dear Annabeth," said Kronos, and I winced as he read my thoughts. "She is so blind, that girl, so marred and confused by love. How can she think Luke would ever love her? The last line of her prophecy revealed that, you know."

I did know. Last summer, on top of Half-Blood Hill, Annabeth had finally told me the last line of her prophecy: _And lose a love to worse than death. _I had realized she had meant Luke, because he had given himself up and fully become Kronos.

"Yes, Annabeth still has feelings for Luke. But not once she truly realizes that I have taken over Luke's body. He is no longer in control. And soon, he will be gone forever, and I will have total dominance over him!" Kronos cackled with glee.

"And then there is this young…Jacob Spark, is it? Ah, the son of Zeus. Yes, he will be a valuable tool, if I cannot persuade his sister to join our side. He is young and foolish, Percy, and he will slip easily to the Titans' side if given the chance. Keep your eyes open, Percy Jackson. Keep your eyes open…"

Suddenly I saw a flash of brief images: a bunch of girls in silver jackets in chains, Artemis calling down the wild on Camp Half-Blood, the gods forced to do Kronos's bidding, Kronos laughing on his throne…

That's when I woke up, shaking and sweating.

I sat in my bed, thinking about the dream. How could Kronos use Jacob? I mean, there's no way Jacob would willingly join the Titans, right? Right?

I gave a heavy sigh, then I woke Tyson and Rachel.

--

**Jacob's POV**

That night, I dreamed for the first time since I'd arrived at Camp Half-Blood.

I was standing on something in the sky, looking down on New York City. I caught my breath. I had never seen the city like this before. It was beautiful.

I looked around me. There were beautiful Greek buildings everywhere, along with people who seemed to glow with power. I was on top of Mount Olympus.

"Beautiful, isn't it?" said a voice behind me. I jumped and turned around.

Standing there was a tall man in a pinstripe business suit. He had some marbled gray in his black hair and trimmed beard, but he looked relatively young. His eyes were rainy gray, but I thought I saw some resemblance in his face…

"Dad?" I said.

He gave me a smile. "Hello, Jacob. My goodness, look how you've grown." He stepped closer, and the air began to smell of ozone. Strangely, I found the smell pleasant and calming.

Zeus walked up and stood next to me, watching the city below. After a minute, I turned to him. "Dad…why didn't you help me all those years I was in the orphanage, or when I was running from monsters? Didn't you care about me?"

His eyes flashed, and thunder rumbled above us. "Oh, Jacob, I _did _help you. Don't you see? I was the one that got you out of the orphanage. I guided on your way to Denver, but unfortunately you found the Lotus Hotel, and then you were beyond even my reach. When you got out, I tried to begin helping you again, until I discovered you were going to Camp Half-Blood. Once you were in New York, I warded off all the monsters I could until you reached Half-Blood Hill. I thought you would be safe there. Then, when my young nephew received the prophecy, I realized I had to claim you, or all would be lost. I waited until the right moment, then I revealed your heritage." He winced. "Hera is not happy with me. She tried convincing me to kill you."

"So…you were never going to claim me as your son?" I asked, the initial happiness I had found at meeting my dad evaporating like mist.

His expression grew grim. "Jacob, it is dangerous to be a child of the Big Three, especially in these times. Do you know what Kronos will try to do to you now that he knows you may be his last hope of stopping the gods? It would have been better for you to have remained unclaimed, at least for a time."

I realized he was right. Being Zeus's son would only make Kronos want to kill me even more. It wasn't enough that I was one of the most skilled half-bloods at camp. I had to be a child of the king of the gods, too.

Zeus reached down and touched my hair delicately. "Do not worry, Jacob," he said. "I trust that you will do well on this quest. You are my only living son. My power flows in your veins. I know you will save your sister." He suddenly smiled. "You have your mother's hair, you know. It is rare that a half-blood resembles their mortal parent much. Our influence is usually overpowering."

I stared at him. "My mother…what was she like?"

He turned and stared at the sky. "She was a brilliant woman, Jacob. One of the greatest I've ever seen in my life. When she died, even though it had been two years, I was distraught. You remember the Great Depression?"

I nodded, and he allowed a spark of humor to enter his face. "It was my doing. I didn't expect it, but being a businessman, I suppose my anger affected the stock market. But back to your mother. She was kind, using a good deal of the money she made off of her art to give to charities. She was humble, too, or else she probably would have been much more famous than she was. She, along with Alcmene and Thalia's mother, were the women I loved most out of all my sires."

That made me feel better than anything else he had said to me. He smiled and gently pressed something into my hand. "Here," he said. "It is my gift to you."

I looked down at my hand and saw, shining in the moonlight…a flashlight.

One of those little key chain flashlights, about two inches wide, platinum in color, with a little chain and a ring on the end. "Oh," I said, "Um…thank you."

"I had it made for you," Zeus said, "For the quest. Turn it on."

I pushed the little black button below the head of the flashlight. Instead of turning on, it grew longer and heavier in my hand, the cool metal on my palm transforming into a leather grip. In a moment, what was once a cheap flashlight was now a shimmering celestial bronze sword. It was long and thin, with a point so sharp it could slice through armor like tin foil. Just my style.

"Do you like it?" my father asked me.

I stared at the sword for a moment. "It's awesome," I said.

He smiled. "Its name is Skysoarer. Use it well, for many hopes are resting on you and your friends. It can channel any electricity you generate, and it will always return to your pocket if it gets lost."

I pushed the small black button that had remained on the sword, and it transformed back into a flashlight. I gripped it tightly and looked at my dad. "Thank you," I said.

He put his hand on my shoulder. "I believe in you, Jacob. This quest will not be easy, but I know you can save the Hunters and bring Artemis back to the gods. It is your destiny. I know that you will somehow pull through."

I smiled, and he smiled back. For the first time since I'd been claimed, I was proud to be Zeus's son.

"Good luck," Dad said to me, then he turned and raised his hands. A bolt of lightning struck him, and he vanished.

That's when I woke up.

I sat there, thinking about the dream and everything my father had told me. Somehow I knew it wasn't a dream, that Zeus really had been there, and I was so happy he had taken the time to talk to me that it took my second to realize what I was holding in my hand: the small flashlight he had given me. I pressed the button, and it transformed into Skysoarer. I smiled, turned off the sword and put it back in my pocket.

--

The next day, I told Chiron about the sword and my dream, although I didn't tell him what Zeus had said about my mother. Chiron examined the sword and then handed it back to me.

"It is a gift from your father," he said. "Heed it well, child, for it is your proof that your father believes in you for this quest."

I put the sword back in my pocket. I had already said goodbye to all my friends in the Hermes cabin, along with some of my other close friends. Beckendorf had given me a high five, and Silena had hugged me tightly. Even Clarisse had slapped me on the back. "Cream some monsters for me, punk," she'd said.

I saw Percy sitting on the hill, leaning against the pine tree that had once been Thalia, my half-sister, and staring at the horizon. Annabeth was walking up to him. I looked over at her bags and noticed her magic Yankees cap sitting with her other things. I got a sneaky and pretty rude idea. When I thought no one was looking, I grabbed the cap and put it on. Then I quietly followed Annabeth up the hill.

I kept my distance, on the off chance that they heard me, but I stayed close enough that I could hear what they were saying. Annabeth walked up behind him and said, "Hey, Seaweed Brain."

He glanced at her but didn't say anything. She got more serious. "This is going to be our most dangerous stunt yet."

"I know," Percy said.

"They're calling it the Quest to End All Quests-"

"I know!" he said sharply, and she flinched away, hurt. He looked at her. "I'm sorry. I'm just…kind of nervous."

"And…?" Annabeth said.

He looked down. "And…oh, I don't know. I wish I'd never gone on this stupid quest in the first place. I have to take all of you, all the ones I care about with me, and the prophecy says that one of us will be lost."

"Don't worry, Percy," Annabeth said soothingly. "It'll be okay. We'll find some way to save Thalia."

"I know, it's just-" he looked her straight in the eyes. "I don't want to lose you."

He said it like _you, _as in all of us, but I could tell he meant _you, you._ My conscience was nagging at me to quit eavesdropping, but then Annabeth gently took his hand. "I don't want to lose you either…"

Then I heard Tyson's voice, "Look! Nico is coming!"

Annabeth and Percy looked away from each other and looked down the hill. "Bloody Styx," I cursed under my breath, using an Olympian swear I had learned from the Ares cabin. I looked too. A boy dressed in all black was slowly trudging up to us. Tyson ran down to meet him.

I quietly went back and put Annabeth's cap back with her bags. Then I went to where everyone was crowding around the boy. He looked about twelve years old. He had long black bangs, dark olive skin, and when I got near him I immediately felt mournful, like I did when I thought about my dead mother. A black sword hung at his side.

Rachel and Annabeth hugged him, and he blushed. He shook Percy and Grover's hand and then turned to look at me. Annabeth glanced between us. "Jacob Spark, meet Nico di Angelo, son of Hades. Nico, this is Jacob, son of Zeus."

I shook my newest cousin's hand, which was cold as ice. "I've heard a lot about you," he said.

"Ditto," I replied.

Chiron trotted up to us. "Nico, you made it!" he said, patting him on the back. Nico gave him a small smile.

"Hi, Chiron," he said. He looked around. "So, the gang's all here, huh?"

It sounded sarcastic, but I didn't know if he meant it that way. Chiron said, "Yes, I suppose so. Argus, are you ready?"

The camp's security guard, who had eyes all over his body, just nodded and got in the camp's rented bus, since the regular SUV couldn't fit all of us. We all slowly followed. I took one last look at Half-Blood Hill, Thalia's pine tree shining in the early morning sunlight. Chiron stood and raised his bow in salute. I realized I was really going to miss Camp Half-Blood, even if I'd only been there two weeks. I'd miss the strawberry fields, the sound of the waves on the beach, even the vicious rock-climbing wall and my lonely bed in cabin one.

I was about to get on the bus when I suddenly caught the scent of wine grapes in the air. "Hello," said a sudden voice right next to me.

I jumped. Mr. D was leaning casually against the bus with his usual bored expression. Only Percy and I were there to see him. Everyone else had loaded on the bus.

"What, did you come to say goodbye?" Percy said, sounding genuinely shocked by the idea.

"Of course not!" Dionysus replied. "I just came to tell you brats that if you fail, you're going to feel my wrath before anyone else's. I very much enjoy being a god, and I won't have you two taking that away from me because you can't stop our old granddaddy. So you'd better not mess this up, Peter Johnson and Jason Spunk, or you'll be driven to such insanity that not even Tartarus will be able to contain you."

"Gee," I said. "Thanks, Mr. D."

"You're very welcome," he replied. "And don't think I'm just a bystander in this little epic. I did more to bring this quest together than you know. If you don't fail, and I'm certainly not saying you won't, I'd appreciate another thank you for all the work I've done."

Before either of us could respond, he snapped his fingers and vanished, leaving only the smell of grapes behind. I shrugged at Percy and got in the van.

--

Once everyone was in the bus, we had a lot of confusion over seating. Tyson took up almost a whole seat by himself, so that left the rest of us to figure things out. I wound up sitting next to Rachel, Percy's mortal friend.

As we pulled off, I said to her, "So, you go to Percy's school?"

She just nodded. "Yeah. Goode's pretty good. I like it there. What about you? Did you ever go to school?"

"For a little while," I replied, looking at my feet. "Just this public school the orphanage was zoned to. I never liked school, though. The teachers always yelled at me, because I got in trouble so much. I was about to become a freshman when I ran away."

"Oh," she said. We sat in silence for a while as the bus pulled away. Finally she said. "So…your mom was an artist, huh?"

I nodded, thinking about what Zeus had told me last night in my dream. "She was supposed to be brilliant."

"I'm a bit of an artist myself, you know," said Rachel, straightening a bit.

"Really?" I said, interested. "I've never known much about it. Who's Michelangelo?"

"Oh my gods, he was this…" and then she was off, telling me about all the famous artists and their most famous pieces and things like that. I must have picked up some of my mom's love for art, because I listened intently and constantly asked questions. Pretty soon, Rachel and I were deep in conversation, so deep we didn't even notice when the bus pulled to a stop at Penn Station…

--

**Percy's POV**

When the bus pulled off, I found myself sitting next to Nico. I was still thinking about what Dionysus had said. How could he have played a role in this quest? Mr. D, the god who sat in his chair all day and couldn't give a care if all of his campers died. That guy, helping us with this quest? It didn't seem likely.

"Have you thought about my offer?" Nico said quietly.

"What?" I said, then, "Oh, right." I was quiet a minute before answering. "Yeah, I've thought about it."

"And?"

"I don't know yet, Nico," I said. "I mean, this is sort of a big decision. I don't even know if your dad will allow my soul to come back from the Underworld once it's down there."

"Well, you better hurry up and decide!" said Nico agitatedly. "You've got until the summer solstice. After that, I won't be able to do it."

"I know," I said. "I'm just…still thinking, okay?"

He got quiet. I looked across the row, to where Tyson was fiddling with his metal scraps again. Annabeth and Grover were behind us, not saying anything. Jacob and Rachel appeared to be deep in conversation, although about what I didn't have a clue.

Argus drove us into the city and finally dropped us off at Penn Station, then he drove off. I looked up at Madison Square Garden next to us, the Empire State building not far off. I couldn't see it, but I knew somewhere, far above the tip of the building, was the huge peak of mountain that was Olympus.

We found an alley and quickly backed into it, away from the mortals. The camp store had supplied us with five hundred dollars and fifty drachmas. This was way more than they usually gave for quests, but since there were seven of us, they expanded a little bit.

Annabeth got a gold drachma and threw it onto the asphalt, crying out in Ancient Greek, _"Stêthi, Ô-"_

But she was cut off as something roared down from the top of Madison Square Garden. I saw a huge gold shape with teeth and claws like daggers standing on top of the dome. It roared again and leapt, clearing the distance between us in a single bound. It came down and tackled Annabeth, sending them skidding to the back of the alley. It looked up and growled at me, and my breath caught. It was the Nemean Lion.


	11. We Fight the Hags of Eternal Ugliness

**Thanks again for the reviews! This half of the story is definitely going to be the hardest to write. There's so much that has to happen…oh well. Enjoy chapter eleven!**

**Percy's POV**

I stood, frozen to the spot, as the huge, metallic lion growled down at Annabeth, preparing to turn her into his lunch. She stared at its face in terror.

It was Tyson who finally moved. He yelled, "Annabeth!" and picked up a trash can, hurling it at the monster. It hit him in the head, and the bag burst, sending garbage spewing all over him…and Annabeth. She got up and ran over to us as the monster slowly rose, rotten banana peels and other garbage stuck in his fur. He roared, and the mortals started pointing at us and screaming. Great, I thought. Ten minutes into our quest and we've already endangered a hundred people.

I uncapped Anaklusmos. It transformed into a bronze sword in my hand. Annabeth drew her bronze knife. Tyson picked up another trash can. Grover pulled a wooden club from his backpack, about the size of his arm. Nico drew his Stygian iron sword. Jacob took a tiny flashlight out of his pocket and turned it on. It suddenly turned into a celestial bronze sword, longer and thinner than Riptide, but still very powerful. Before I could ask him where he'd gotten it, the lion charged.

It went for Tyson, because it had attacked him first. The big guy ducked under the monster's claws and then jumped on top of it. The monster roared and tried to shake him off, but Tyson put the trash can on his head and started bashing it like a Chinese gong.

We chased them as the lion exploded out of the alley, terrifying dozens of mortals on the street. It finally shook Tyson off and pulled the can off of its head. It turned and attacked me instead. I dodged its first swipe and swung at it with all my might. The sword clattered off its metallic fur with a _clang_, but it didn't seem to injure it in the slightest. While it was distracted, Annabeth snuck up on it, invisible, and stuck her knife right in a place you don't want to be stuck.

The monster turned and roared furiously, trying to see who had done it. It sniffed the air, and then it suddenly hit its paw against solid air. Annabeth went flying into the street, her cap falling off her head. Luckily, the lion hadn't gotten her with its claws, but that could soon change. It pounced for her again.

"Annabeth!" I yelled, running towards her, but Jacob got there first.

Annabeth recovered her cap and stood, shaking, behind Jacob. His determined gaze occasionally twitched with fear as he and the lion faced each other. His sword glinted brilliantly in the sunlight.

Suddenly, the monster charged. It snapped at Jacob's face. He countered with two quick blows at the lion's mouth. Its claws lashed out. Jacob stabbed at its chest before the claws could reach him. One of the points made a cut in his arm, but the sword's wickedly sharp point made a solid dent in its fur.

A part of me told me to go help him, but I was taking this as a test for Jacob. I wanted to see how he handled a real monster. Grover and Tyson seemed to have the same idea. Their weapons were still raised, but they were analyzing all Jacob's moves critically, trying to decide how good he was.

Meanwhile, the lion and Jacob were going at it. Jacob spun and slashed, his electric blue eyes flashing wildly. The lion lunged at him again and again, determined to make him ground beef. Suddenly Jacob rolled under the lion as it lunged again and then turned and pointed his sword at its mouth.

A flash of lightning burst from thin air and struck the tip, like on the hillside with the snake women. It coiled of the edge of the sword right as the lion turned and roared in frustration again. The electricity hit the lion right in the mouth. Its eyes widened and it tried to shut its mouth, but apparently it couldn't. It gave a final cry of agony as the lightning coiled into its body and it burst into yellow powder.

The mortals were going crazy, running around and screaming. I stared at the pile of dust in the middle of West 32nd. When I had defeated the Nemean Lion, I had gotten its pelt in the form of a jacket as a spoil of war. No such luck now. Suddenly Annabeth grabbed my arm. "Come on, we've got to get out of here," she said, dragging me back into the alley.

"Annabeth, that was-"

"I know what it was!" she snapped, but her voice quivered with fear and she looked shaken. "But we have to leave before the news crew gets here. We don't want to draw attention to ourselves.

I realized she was right. Already, I saw a Channel 4 van pull up across the street, a news anchor getting out. I quickly followed Annabeth back into the alley.

I capped Riptide as the seven of us gathered in the alley. Annabeth dropped the drachma on the asphalt again. _"Stêthi, Ô hárma diabolês!"_ she cried.

I watched as the coin melted into the asphalt and a huge gray taxi that appeared to be made of smoke melted out of the ground. My stomach was already aching, and we hadn't even gotten on yet.

The door opened to reveal three old ladies that all had empty eye sockets except for one eye in the middle woman's left hole. "All right, all right, get in! We're very busy today, so we don't have much time!"

"How many are there, Tempest?" said the lady to her left.

"_Seven?"_ the middle lady said. "This is a taxi, not a limousine!"

"Can you take us?" I asked agitatedly, handing her a few drachmas.

She stared at them hungrily. "All right, fine! Get in, and be quick about it!" She hit a button, and when we got in, there were two extra rows to fit all of us. We squeezed in and sat listening to the Gray Sisters argue.

"I want to chew on it, Wasp!" said the third woman. "Give me the tooth!"

"No!" Wasp snapped. "Besides, it's my turn to drive!"

"Did they say they have _one _tooth?" asked Jacob, disgusted.

"Forget it!" said Tempest. "Where to?" she asked us.

"Um…Frisco would be ideal," said Annabeth.

"No, no!" said Wasp. "Too far, too far! We're far too busy to drive you all there! And speaking of busy…it's _not_ too busy for me to have the eye, Anger!"

"I don't even have it!" screeched Anger. "Give _me_ the tooth!"

"Never!" said Wasp. The two began fighting angrily until Tempest roared, "Will you two _shut up?!_"

They got quiet, and Tempest sighed. "Look, we can take you as far as Nashville. After that, you're on your own!"

"What?" I said. "But that's way farther south than we…"

"Percy, it's okay," said Annabeth quietly. "Nashville would be a good start. We can get a ride there and start moving west." Her look told me not to argue with the sisters.

I sighed. "Fine," I said. "Whatever."

"All right!" Tempest said. "Let's put 'er in high gear, girls!"

Wasp took the stick shift and pulled it down to a letter I'd never seen before- a red Y.

"Um…what does Y stand for?" I asked nervously.

Then suddenly Tempest floored it, and we went flying out of the alley faster than I would have thought possible. We went roaring down the streets of New York, through cars, buildings- and I mean _straight _through them, like smoke.

"YEEHAW!" the sisters screamed as we rocketed toward Tennessee at three hundred miles an hour.

--

**Jacob's POV**

The Gray Sister's taxi was unlike anything I'd ever experienced before. We nearly drove straight off of two bridges, drove straight through ten buildings, and every time we got caught in traffic the sisters argued so loudly I almost forgot about feeling like my stomach was in a blender. I didn't know how we were going to make it out of this alive.

"Hey," Annabeth said quietly as we went five feet in the air again.

"Yeah?" I said, taking deep breaths.

"I just wanted to say…thanks," Annabeth said. "That was really brave what you did, with the lion and everything. I don't know how you did it, but…I would've been toast back there if it hadn't been for you. So…thanks, Sparky. I owe you one."

"Sparky?" I said, smirking.

"Yeah." She went a little pink. "Can I call you that? _Jacob _just sounds so…formal. Ugh."

I considered the nickname. "I like it," I said, then we swerved out of another traffic jam and I was forced to concentrate on not getting sick.

--

After five hours of churning stomachs and the sister's screeching, we finally arrived in Nashville. The Gray Sisters dropped us off downtown and sped off to answer more summons.

I looked around me. Nashville was a decently sized city. The tallest building- a big Bellsouth tower- had two tall spires on either end, so it looked like Batman's mask. The city was well named Music City USA. Every third shop was a music store, and guitar players sat on the streets with their cases open for people to drop change into.

We quickly asked directions and started walking through the city. "Where are we going?" I asked Annabeth.

"The Nashville Parthenon," Annabeth said, her eyes lighting up.

"No wonder she wanted to come here so bad," said Grover. Annabeth glared at him.

We left the main part of the city and came into a big park, alongside a beautiful lake. Dogs barked. Kids played. It was nice after the noise and traffic of the taxi.

It wasn't long before we came in sight of the Parthenon. A huge stone building with columns on either side holding up a huge roof decorated with Greek art. Annabeth and Rachel gasped. "It's beautiful!" Rachel said.

_Yeah, you are. _The sentence formed in my brain before I could think. Whoa. Where had that come from? I shook my head, trying to clear it. We kept walking towards the Parthenon.

We went inside through the main entrance, and I was still wondering where the thought could have possibly formed. Did I like Rachel? I had no idea. I mean, I had only talked to her once. Then again, we had gotten pretty deep in conversation. I looked at her. She was looking around at the main lobby, her eyes sparkling. She did have sort of a pretty face, and her red hair shone in the sunlight through the windows…

I hit myself in the head and looked at Grover, hoping he wasn't reading my emotions. But he was too absorbed by a painting of a satyr by a river. "Sort of looks like me," he murmured.

Our tour group was just us, a young couple on a date, and a couple of older ladies with wide-brimmed hats so I couldn't see their faces. They were dressed in all black, and Rachel looked at them suspiciously.

"What's wrong?" I asked her.

She shook her head. "Nothing," she said. "It's just…never mind."

We followed our tour guide, a perky lady with her hair in a tight bun, down to the gallery. Rachel marveled at the paintings and sculptures, and I had to admit some of them were pretty amazing, but Annabeth was tapping her foot impatiently, wanting to get to the statue of her mom, Athena.

As we walked down the halls, Grover and Tyson began sniffing suspiciously. Rachel was still glaring at the old ladies. "Is everything okay?" Annabeth asked Grover quietly.

"Bad smell," said Tyson. "Not good."

The first lady looked at us, and she smiled underneath her wide-brimmed hat. "What's wrong, children?" she asked, her voice croaky and strange. "Are you enjoying the tour?"

"Yes, ma'am," said Percy quickly. Whatever was wrong with the others, Annabeth, Percy, Nico and I shrugged and kept walking.

Something had been tugging at me the whole time we'd been here, like a memory I'd forgotten long ago. It finally hit me as we came out of the gallery. "I used to live here," I said suddenly.

"You lived at the Parthenon?" asked Nico. "How'd you pull that off?"

"No, not at the Parthenon. I mean here, in Nashville. This is where me and my mom lived. I remember this city."

"Sparky, that doesn't make sense," said Annabeth. "You were two when you left. It's not like you could remember-"

But at that moment, we came around the corner to a huge high-ceilinged room where the statue of Athena stood, and Annabeth's voice faded.

The statue was ten feet tall, dressed in ornate robes with a shield beside her on the ground, decorated with more Greek art. In her hand she held a small winged girl. Nike, goddess of victory.

"Is it a good likeness?" I asked them. No one answered; they were too awed by the statue.

As the tour guide continued to ramble a bunch of facts about the statue, Rachel suddenly looked at me. "Something's wrong," she said quietly.

I must have looked confused, because she jerked her head towards the ladies. They were cackling and moving towards Percy. As they got close, one of them drew a long knife.

"Percy, duck!" I yelled. He turned and looked just in time to dodge the stab the lady made with the knife.

"Curse you!" the lady screeched, and then they both began to change. They pulled off their wide-brimmed hats to reveal their faces, which terribly ugly: sunken cheeks, dry, cracked mouths, and fierce yellow eyes. One of them had short brown hair, the other long flowing black hair. Their cloaks flew off, revealing their thin, warty hands. They drew their knives and began advancing on us, smiling and revealing their pointed fangs.

I automatically stepped in front of Rachel, turning on Skysoarer. The tour guide and the couple screamed and ran away. Annabeth drew her knife, but she looked shocked. "Those are the Gorgons!" she said. "They're- they're not supposed to be-"

Then the first Gorgon attacked.

Annabeth and I dodged her swipes with the knife, but she was skilled. I went in for a stab, but she twisted my hilt and threw me away. Then she and Annabeth went head-on, knife vs. knife. I wasn't sure how long the fight would last.

Percy, Nico, Grover, and Tyson weren't having much better luck either. They were all hitting the Gorgon, but she was somehow avoiding them all and still attacking. These girls wouldn't be easy to beat.

Just then, the Gorgon hit Annabeth's knife away and cackled madly. I advanced on her, and found myself looking straight at her face. It was so ugly…looking at it, my whole body went rigid, and the sword suddenly felt weird in my hands.

"Don't look at her face!" Annabeth yelled. "She's not as powerful as Medusa, but she can still turn you to stone if you look at her too long!"

I was jolted, and I tore my eyes from the Gorgon's face and concentrated on her knife, which was flashing wildly through the air. Suddenly the other Gorgon let out a wail. Percy had managed to stab it in the thigh. She was writhing on the ground.

"Sister!" the other Gorgon yelled. Annabeth and I nodded at each other, and we took advantage of the fact that her back was turned and drove our blades through her heart.

She let out a terrible cry and looked at us with fury. "We'll meet again, Perseus Jackson," she growled at him. "And then you shall pay for what you did to our sister!" Then both the Gorgons burst into black flames and disappeared.

I slowly lowered my sword. The Gorgons had been way harder than the Nemean Lion. I was scratched up. The Gorgon had reopened the cut on my arm from the lion, and now it stung like someone had shoved barbwire into my skin.

"We have to talk about this," Annabeth said.

"First things first," Grover replied. "Let's get out of here!"

For the first time, I noticed that alarms were blaring and people were running around screaming. We quickly ran out of Athena's room and tore out of the Parthenon as fast as we could, and I felt like I could still hear the mad cackle of the Gorgon ringing in my head.


	12. I Get A New Training Partner

**I'm glad you guys like the new romance! Please keep reviewing and tell me what you think!**

**Actually, though, this time I've got to say something I failed to mention before, and let me use caps for emphasis: THERE WILL BE CHARACTER DEATHS IN THIS STORY. I know at least one character will die (No, I'm not gonna say who, you snoopers) but I'd like it better if there were two. So, all that to say, if your favorite character dies, please don't flame me, because I won't pay any attention to you. Enjoy chapter twelve!**

**Percy's POV**

We tore away from the Parthenon and back into the city. Annabeth was blabbing the whole time about how there was no possible way the Gorgons could have come back… "I mean, they died thousands of years ago!" I agreed with her, but I waited until we were back in front of the Batman Building to talk.

Somehow, I knew the Gorgons weren't dead. They had just been weak back there. Somehow Luke had brought them back from the dead, and they were just getting warmed up. What they had said about Medusa scared me. I had no doubts that they would keep their promise and get revenge on me.

We sat in front of the large building and watched the bustle and traffic of Nashville. I watched the guitar players on the streets, secretly hoping one of them might be Apollo, hear to give us a ride like when me and Grover and my other friends went on the quest to save Annabeth. No such luck, though.

"This is _so _bad," Annabeth was saying. "We have to get out of here, like, _now_. But how? There isn't even a taxi!"

I realized she was right. Nashville was pretty big, but it wasn't big enough that you couldn't drive around in your car if you had one. We were stuck with no ride, no way out of the city.

Tyson suddenly tapped my shoulder. "Man wants you," he said, pointing.

I looked. Standing at the bottom of the steps was a large man in a big sweatshirt. A hood covered his face, but he pointed down the street. I looked where he was pointing and gasped.

It was a huge, creamy white limousine, the kind Hollywood stars rode in. It was long enough to fit all of us easily, and it was parked on the side of the road. I got the strange feeling it was waiting on us. "Hey, guys," I said, pointing. "There's our ride."

I turned to look at the man, but he was gone. Weird, I thought.

"What are you talking about, Percy?" Annabeth snapped. "That's not for us."

"No, he's right," Nico murmured. "Can't you feel it? It's…calling us." The others nodded, and Annabeth looked even more annoyed.

Finally, she gave up. "All right, fine," she said. "But for the record, it was not my idea to walk into some stranger's limo and…" She continued ranting as we walked across the street and stepped into the limo.

The inside had its own miniature bar, which only served nonalcoholic drinks, and it was loaded with food and massage chairs. It even had its own 40" cable TV. We stepped inside and sat in the seats, looking at everything in awe.

The minute everyone was inside and we had shut the door, the limo began pulling off, although where it was going, I didn't know. We rode toward the hills in the west, and Jacob looked back, sort of regretfully, like he didn't want to leave. "Don't worry," I said to him. "We'll come back someday."

He nodded. "I know," he said. "Someday."

--

We spent the following night in the limo, heading west up through Missouri. I still didn't know where we were going, but spending our first night in a limousine was pretty okay with me.

I quickly found out the limo was magic. For one thing, there was no visible driver, although the limo seemed to know where it was going. Then, each of our individual favorite drinks poured themselves and served them to us. It was weird, but pretty cool. I still wondered who that man could have been, but I didn't dwell on it too much.

We sipped our drinks and munched on snacks while we discussed our next move, but we were all too tired to talk. Pretty soon, we hit the lights and settled down for the night. Jacob began flipping channels on the TV. After a few minutes of arguing, we finally found _The Bourne Identity_ on one channel and decided on that.

Annabeth sat down next to me and sipped on her Coke timidly. "You should sleep," I told her.

She just nodded. "Percy…" she began. "This feels weird. The quest, I mean. We've already been attacked twice on our first day, and we don't even know if the Hunters are at Mount Tam. It just doesn't feel right."

I shrugged. "We've just got to trust Chiron's word. Don't worry, we'll figure something out." I smiled at her, and she smiled back, though I could tell she was still worried.

Late into the night, as we sat watching the movie, Annabeth slowly slipped into slumber. Her eyes closed and her head slowly fell onto my shoulder. At first, I was surprised. I considered waking her, but she looked beautiful, sleeping so peacefully…well, I left her be, to put it short.

Lying there, my head resting on hers, smelling the sweet scent of her hair, it made me realize that it was little moments like this that made things like the quest worthwhile. This was what life was about. This was why I had to defeat Kronos. Because unless I did, the world wouldn't have things like this anymore. That, I thought as I slowly fell asleep, was something worth fighting for: the little things like a teenage guy and a girl falling asleep next to each other, the things that made life suddenly seem so worthwhile.

--

**Jacob's POV**

Maybe it was the caffeine in the Coke in my hand, or the action movie playing on the screen in front of me, but I couldn't sleep.

The limo was pretty amazing. Magical servants gave us whatever we wanted. But it didn't help what I was feeling inside. The truth? I was afraid.

Back at the Parthenon, I hadn't been able to fight the Gorgons. If Percy hadn't distracted it, it could have killed Annabeth and me. _Killed._ For the first time the word rang through my head, and I suddenly realized that there was a good chance I would _die _on this quest. Not disappear. Not go into a coma and then miraculously revive. Die. D-I-E. Never come back. The concept scared me beyond anything else I had seen.

I looked over. Annabeth had her head against Percy's shoulder, and they were both sound asleep. I smirked, thinking maybe I should take some pictures or something. Percy was twitching and mumbling in his sleep, and I figured he was dreaming. His eyes suddenly shot open. He glanced at Annabeth, who hadn't moved. He gently moved her head so he didn't wake her, then he ordered a Coke and sat down next to me.

"Bad dream?" I asked.

He took the Coke and took a gulp, and then he nodded. "You wanna talk about it?" I asked.

He glanced at me suspiciously, then gave in. "Okay," he said. He leaned back in the chair and closed his eyes.

"I was standing in Kronos's throne room, on top of Mount Tam. I saw Artemis standing there, accusing Luke of keeping the Hunters as hostages. Luke told her he would return the Hunters to her as soon as his other problem- I'm guessing that's us- was taken care of. He told Artemis maybe she should help him out. She acted like they'd had this discussion before and snapped that she wouldn't do it. Then he-" Here Percy gulped before going on- "He brought one of the Hunters in and had her tortured before Artemis."

I gasped. "What did she do?"

"I don't think she could do anything. She seemed like she wanted to help, but something was holding her back. Then suddenly the Gorgons walked in. They said they had failed in killing us. Luke got really angry and the whole throne room started crumbling. That's when I woke up."

I laid back. "This is really bad," I said. "We have to get to Mount Tam, and fast."

He nodded, obviously still shaken by the nightmare. "You don't know what it's like, being the hero of a prophecy like this," he said. "Having so many hopes on your shoulders, so many people staring at you, wondering if you're the one who'll save us. Sometimes I wish-" He cut off, and I got the feeling he was about to say something personal.

Instead, he looked at me and managed a small smile. "I wish I could be you, Jacob," he said. "You're so laid back and calm, it seems like you're not afraid of anything."

I stiffened, and stared at the TV. "Not everything," I said quietly. He looked confused, so I told him about my fears for the quest.

He stared at his glass for a while. "It's your fatal flaw," he said finally. "I should've guessed, considering who your dad is."

"What is?" I asked. I'd heard of fatal flaws, but I'd never thought of what mine might be.

"Your thirst for control, and leadership. It should've been obvious, considering who your dad is. You crave control. You want everything to be good, in balance, and _you _want to be the one who makes it happen. That's why you fear death so much. If you die, you disappoint everyone and lose your chance to maintain control. It would be like your ultimate failure."

I thought about that for a while. The more I did, the more I knew Percy was right. My thirst for control _was_ my fatal flaw. I tried to think of a way to counter it. The only way I could think to stop my fear of death was to get better at fighting, but that would only make me want to be more powerful. That is, unless I had someone who would help me and criticize me even if I was good…

"Percy, will you train me?" I asked.

The question surprised him. He just said, "What?"

I looked down. "I think I need someone to teach me about the sword, in the right way, someone who can humble me and stopper my thirst, yet at the same time improve me so I don't fear death anymore. And I can't think of anyone better to do it than you."

He looked me over, like he was trying to decide if I was being honest or not. Apparently, he realized I was. "Okay," he said slowly. "I think I can do that. We'll start tomorrow. Or, at least, whenever this thing stops." With that, he got up and sat next to Annabeth. Pretty soon he was asleep again.

I stared at the movie playing on the TV, and wondered if I had just made the right decision, or gotten myself into a world of trouble.

--

Early the next morning, the limo stopped.

We all got out, and found ourselves in the middle of Kansas, with nothing but trees and forest around us. The limo pulled off and drove into the trees, and suddenly it was gone.

We all watched it go, then Grover said, "So…what now?"

Annabeth shrugged. "We keep heading west," she said, and started walking. The rest of us followed.

We spent the next three days trekking through Kansas, seeing few towns and even fewer people. We tried to keep on the DL most of the time, but it wasn't really necessary. There wasn't a person in sight.

Each day I spent getting to know everyone in the group. Some things I found out quickly: that Nico had stayed at the Lotus Hotel for seventy plus years too, that Tyson worked at the Cyclops forges in Poseidon's kingdom, that Annabeth had come to camp when she was seven years old. Other things came slower, and with much reluctance: that Grover felt like he couldn't lead the search for the wild places, Nico's frustration at not knowing his background, Annabeth…well, don't even get me started on her.

I spent more time talking to Rachel than anyone else. The others in the group thought it was so she wouldn't be shunned; she was mortal, after all. I almost convinced myself that was the reason. But that wasn't it at all.

She taught me more about art, told me about the quest in the Labyrinth and how scared she had been. One night, when we were sitting alone, she finally told me about her father.

"He's a good man," she said, staring at the night sky. "Big and powerful. But his work…it just goes against everything I want to defend. He tears up wild parks for his business. We fight a lot about it. I run away every other week, stay at one of my friend's houses. They don't mind, but still…" She choked, and lowered her head.

I wanted to think of a way to comfort her, but I didn't know how. I wanted to put my arms around her, protect her from everything around us that tried to hurt her, but I didn't know how she'd react to that.

I walked back to where we were making camp for the night, deep in thought. I had to think hard about this. I couldn't help how I felt for Rachel, but there were several problems. For one thing, she was more than a year older than me. She might think of me as some kid, for all I knew.

For another thing, Rachel was…_mortal._ As much as I tried to ignore it, the blatant fact stared me in the face every time I talked to her. There was no ignoring that relationships between Greek heroes and mortals hadn't gone too well in the past. I didn't know if it would work out for us either.

And then there was Percy. She followed him around all the time, talking to him, laughing with him. It was obvious she liked him, and he had a _way_ better shot with her than I did. I could tell Annabeth didn't like it either, but I couldn't get the courage to go talk to her about it. I was afraid she would gut me or something.

Late that night, after everyone else was asleep, Percy picked up Riptide and whistled quietly. "Come on," he said, jerking his head back into the woods. I got up reluctantly and followed.

We had sparred twice a day for the last three days, and I was still sore from the last match that day. We found a spot deep in the woods and Percy began teaching a left-handed backswing. I was forced to push all thoughts of Rachel out of my head as we began to spar. Percy was…astounding. I've never seen a better swordsman in my life. And the cool thing was, I was a match for him. I tried to ignore it, to be humble, but I had to suppress a smile every time I knocked the sword out of his hands or he called us off when I could've kept going. I was about as good as he was, with a fraction of the training.

Although the training brought us a little closer, I could still tell Percy resented me. For one thing, he was the only one who still called me Jacob. Everyone else had followed Annabeth's lead and started calling me Sparky. Maybe he disliked me because of my dad. Maybe because I had beaten him in my first sword match. Whatever the case, Percy Jackson didn't like me, and I was too nervous to ask why.

After the sparring, I washed my face in a stream and plopped down on my mat, exhausted and wanting to sleep. I dully wondered how long this schedule was going to last.

Little did I know it wouldn't last long. In fact, it would only last two more days, until June 22nd. On June 22nd, everything changed.


	13. I Attend My Own Burial

**It's only been a few minutes since I posted the last chapter, because I want to get as much in as possible this week (I'm leaving for summer camp Sunday, and it'll last all week). The POV's are going to be all Percy's for the next few chapters…not gonna say why…:). Enjoy the new chap!**

After the limo let us out, we began making our way across Kansas, passing through the middle of nowhere several times over. Our lives fell into a cycle that wasn't broken for a long time, unless a monster attacked, which only happened three or four times (for a half-blood, that's pretty good). The worst monster was a huge dragon that almost swallowed Nico whole; if Annabeth hadn't sliced its toe off at the exact same moment, I don't know what would've happened.

Each day, we would wake up and have a light breakfast, and then start walking. The talking was only two or three at a time, mostly someone and Jacob, who had taken the responsibility of getting to know everyone in the group. Rachel was constantly talking and laughing with me, although Hades if I knew why. Annabeth didn't like it, and she was constantly glaring at me, like it was my fault.

I wanted to talk to her about the other night, but she wouldn't listen to me. "It was an accident, Percy," she'd say. "Quit getting so worked up about it."

Her attitude didn't improve my mood, and that was part of the reason why I worked Jacob so hard in our practice sessions. He was brilliant, for someone who'd had as little practice as he did, and that only caused me to resent him even more. I showed him my most complicated moves, and criticized him without restraint. His anger flared at times, his blonde hair would crackle and his eyes would flash angrily and I would see a little of his sister, Thalia, in him.

We practiced twice a day, Nico occasionally tagging along and giving pointers. Nico. Ugh. He pestered me almost as much as Rachel. I didn't know what to tell him, though. I hadn't decided if I wanted to give up my soul to Hades or not. It was a hard decision to make. I tried to talk to Annabeth about it, but…well, we've been through that.

I could tell everyone except maybe Tyson knew about Nico's offer. They would whisper about it when they thought I wasn't listening, and I realized everyone was anticipating my decision more and more every day.

The fifth day of our quest was the summer solstice. I felt Nico's glare from the moment I woke up, and I groaned in agony. I had thought about it all night long, and I had finally come to a decision. As we had breakfast, I turned to Nico and said quietly, "Okay. I'll do it."

He nodded. "We'll wait 'till it gets dark," he said. "I'll tell you where to meet me then."

--

I told Jacob about the offer first.

When we were finished sparring for the first time that day, I confessed my decision to him. I could tell he didn't like it, but he just shrugged and said, "You're more experienced than I am, Percy. If…if this is what you think is best, then go for it."

I studied him skeptically. He had grown a lot in the past few days, both physically and in maturity. His biceps bulged out now, and all traces of baby fat had vanished from his body. The Kansas sun had turned his skin golden brown, and his blonde bangs were so long they almost touched his nose unless he constantly flipped them back.

He was also a much bigger leader in the group than before. He hadn't just earned their respect. He had earned their trust, and that was something big in the world of Greek heroes.

"Jacob," I said slowly. "If…when I do this, tonight…I want you to take over the quest, okay? Get the rest of them to Mount Tam. Try and save the Hunters. Do it for me, okay?"

His eyes widened, and for a moment, I thought he was going to refuse. Then he slowly nodded. "Okay, Percy. I'll do it."

"Good." I turned and started walking back towards the clearing.

"Percy?" Jacob called. I turned around. "Have you told Annabeth yet?"

I looked down and shook my head. "No."

"You should," he said. "I don't know what's going on between you two, but it's not going to be solved the way you're handling it." With that, he turned and walked past me into the trees.

I thought about what he had said, and finally decided what I had to do.

I found Annabeth on top of a hill, gazing out at Sharon Springs, Kansas, our last town before we hit Colorado. It amazed me we'd traveled such a distance on foot in just four days. But then again, we weren't ordinary kids.

I sat down beside her on the hill and looked at the small town. "Hey," I said.

"Hey," she said. "Amazing, isn't it? To be in places like New York and Nashville, and then see nothing places like this in the same country."

"Yeah," I said. We were quiet for a minute. Then I turned and looked at her. "Annabeth…I just want you to know…I've agreed to take up Nico's offer. I'm giving up my soul. Tonight."

For a minute she didn't say anything, which tortured me worse than if she'd hit me. I had to know what she thought.

Then she looked at me, her hair shining dazzlingly bright in the sunlight, her gray eyes brimming with tortured indecision. "Okay," she said finally.

I waited for more, and got nothing. " 'Okay'?" I said. "That's all you got to say? 'Okay'?"

"Yeah," she snapped. "I can't think of anything else you could comprehend. There's a lot I want to say, but you wouldn't get it. You'd just sit there like an idiot and stare at me like you've got no clue. So, yes. Okay. Go ahead, throw your life into the Underworld not knowing if you'll get it back or not. Leave us all up here to go to Mount Tam ourselves. It's not like we care." She was crying now. "Leave us here, so you can take a little vacation and then save the world. I'll be happy for you. Goodbye, Percy."

"Annabeth…" I tried to put my arms around her, but she pushed me away.

"Just go," she said, sobbing. I sat there, more hurt than I had ever been in my life, then I got up and made my way back down to the hill to tell Grover and the others.

--

I didn't have the heart to tell Tyson.

I mean, I didn't even know if the big guy would get it. I could hear him right now. _Percy is…leaving? But why? Where are you going? Are you coming back?_ If I tried to tell him, I might start crying, and that would definitely not be the brave thing to do. I asked Jacob to tell him, after I was gone. He just nodded. Poor guy. I was dumping so much responsibility on him at once. He must feel like his head is exploding.

Oh, well. At least his heart isn't, like mine.

We kept moving, stopping in Sharon Springs to pick up supplies, and then, when we picked up the pace a little, we finally hit the Colorado borderline. We might have cheered, if we didn't know what was happening that night.

When the sun began setting, and we stopped for the night, Nico found me and whispered, "There's a little graveyard in a gulch about fifteen yards from that tree." He pointed, and I could see a tiny gated field far off. "We'll do it there. Meet me when everyone else has settled down." He went back to roasting his hot dog, and I sighed miserably.

Jacob and I sparred after dinner, but my heart just wasn't into it. I kept thinking about what I was about to do. Jacob seemed to tell, and we called off early and went back to the campsite quietly.

Tyson was already asleep. Grover and Rachel were sitting on a log, talking quietly. Nico was pacing nervously, tapping his silver ring. Annabeth lay on her mat, staring at the stars.

After a few minutes, Nico jerked his head and started walking. I waited a few seconds, then got up and followed him. Annabeth wasn't looking at me, but a tear trickled down her cheek as I walked to the graveyard.

Cemeteries at night have always spooked me. I've seen enough scary movies for that. Nico seemed fearless, walking right past the graves without even passing a glance. I wondered what it was like to be him, to be able to hear these people, calling you, pleading with you, even catching glimpses of them out of the corners of your eye. Creepy, I thought.

Nico led me to the center of the graveyard. "Stand here," he said, pointing to the center grave, a huge, marble monument. It said, in big bold letters:

R.I.P

JAMES T. GARRISON

1917- 1981

I gulped, and stood facing the grave. Nico moved back and looked at me, his dark eyes glinting in the moonlight. "Are you ready?" he asked.

I took a deep breath. "Let's do this," I said.

Nico took a necklace strung with some kind of teeth that were carved into the shape of skulls. He put it around my neck. "Good luck," he whispered.

Then he stepped back and began chanting in a language older than Greek. At first, nothing happened. Then a fog slowly descended around the graveyard. Dark clouds covered up all the light in the sky except the crescent moon that smiled wickedly down at me.

Suddenly, a single hand broke up from one of the graves. It was followed by more body parts, and soon, the living dead began to break up from the graves. They were dressed in fine clothes: expensive dresses and tuxedos. But most of them had waxy, half-decayed skin, and some had no skin at all.

I was terrified, but I forced myself not to move.

The dead circled around me and began chanting with Nico. Then from the grave in front of me rose a large, glowing blue spirit: an old man in a tuxedo. _It must be James Garrison._ He glared down at me, his eyes dark and cold and endless. Then he grabbed my shoulders and began to sink back into the earth. I felt a cold sensation in my toes, and for a second, I thought he was freezing me solid. Then I realized: my shoes were sinking into the dirt. The ghost was pulling me down with it.

I was starting to get really freaked out when a voice called, "Percy!"

I turned my head, disbelievingly. "Annabeth?"

There she was, running towards me, unaware of the ghosts around her, tears streaming down her face. "Wait, Percy!" she cried. "Stop!"

"Nico!" I yelled. "Stop the ritual!"

"_What?"_ he said, momentarily breaking his chanting. "I can't stop now!"

"You have to!" said Annabeth, shaking him. "Please, Nico!"

I had sunk down to my ankles now. Nico glared at Annabeth for a moment, then seemed to come to a decision. He began chanting something else, much more rapidly. The dead groaned in protest, but they were being pulled back into their graves. The ghost of James Garrison roared in anger as he sunk back down into the dark. The clouds moved away and the stars shone bright once more as the last of the dead vanished and we were alone in the middle of a foggy graveyard.

I uprooted my feet from the dirt and turned to Annabeth, who was running towards me. "What is it?" I asked, but she tackled me with a hug before I could say anything else.

I put my arms around her as she held tightly to me. "Percy," she said, sobbing. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I just couldn't let you go. I…"

I turned so I was looking straight into her eyes. I saw there something I had never seen before; as if all of her mental defenses had been shattered, and now she was completely open. I saw something I suddenly realized I had wanted to see since I had danced with her on Mount Olympus, since we had tried to go on a date last summer when I had blown up my school's band room, since we had first kissed on Mount St. Helens. I saw the one emotion that I had wanted to see in her eyes all along: love.

I leaned my head forward, and she came up to meet me. I took a final breath, and kissed her with all my might.

When I broke away, I stared at her, waiting for a response. She stared into my eyes, and then she smiled, joy brimming in her face. "What was that for, Seaweed Brain?" she asked.

She hadn't called me that in so long, it made my heart melt to hear it again. I gently kissed her again, but stopped short when I heard applause coming from around the graveyard. I turned and saw the others emerging from the fog, applauding and grinning at each other. Even Tyson clapped, though he looked confused and disgusted. "Why are they _kissing_?" he asked Grover. The satyr just laughed and shook his head.

"Nicely done," called Jacob.

"Yeah! Encore, encore!" Rachel said, smiling, though she had a touch of hurt in her face. I made a note to talk to her later.

Suddenly I heard hysteric sobbing coming from someone who wasn't in our group. I turned to see a beautiful woman making her way towards us, sobbing uncontrollably.

"Oh, that was wonderful!" Aphrodite said. "Absolutely beautiful! _Exactly_ how I wanted it to end!" She continued sobbing.

Annabeth looked at me. I laughed and shook my head. I was about to kiss her again when Aphrodite added, "Oh, and there are monsters attacking your campsite."

Laughter died. Smiles faded. Everyone said, _"What?"_

The goddess of love looked up. "Your campsite? It's under attack. Just thought I might let you kno-"

By then we were already sprinting back to the camp. "Good luck to you two!" Aphrodite called as we ran out of the graveyard. "Oh, and Jacob, don't think I'm finished with you! You'll get yours soon!"

It was pretty dark, but I thought I saw Jacob turn a deep shade of red.

Aphrodite was right. There were monsters attacking our camp. But they weren't the kind I was expecting. It was a herd of stags, glowing silver, which were trampling our things and…_urinating_ on our mats.

"What?" Annabeth cried. "Shoo! Shoo!"

The stags didn't move, they just stared at each other in confusion.

Nico and I looked at Jacob. "Should you do the honors?"

He shrugged. "I guess, so we don't all get soaked." He drew Skysoarer and raised it in the air. "To me!" he called. Thunder rumbled, and a bolt of lightning struck Jacob's sword. This time, he let it charge on his blade, growing more powerful by the second. Then he finally released it on the campfire. The fire exploded and flared up ten feet in the air, and the stags scattered, terrified.

"Very nice," Grover said when the fire had returned to normal.

Annabeth was thinking hard. "Those were Artemis's stags, but why didn't they attack us? Why would they just sabotage our camp like that?"

"You say that like it's a good thing," Nico said in disgust, staring at the stag pee all over his bed mat.

We cleaned up the stag's mess and then sat around the fire and talked for a long time. I was worried about the stags, but I was too concentrated on the girl next to me to do anything about it. Annabeth's hand slipped into mine, and even though it was the first time I probably _should've_ been embarrassed, I wasn't.

Late into the night, when I lay with my arm around Annabeth, who was sleeping peacefully, I realized Athena was not going to be happy with me. She hadn't even approved of me being _friends_ with her daughter. This…this might be equal to smacking her in the face. I made a silent prayer: _Athena, do not be angry with me for loving your daughter, and I will make sure it does not get in the way of our duties._

With that, I put my arm around my new girlfriend and was asleep within minutes.

**Well, there you go. I hope you people are happy. I'm just resigning to the fact that I'm really bad at writing romance, which sucks, because I have to write even more pretty soon. I'll try and post a new chapter before camp, but until then, review!**


	14. Jacob Causes A Thunderstorm

**Once again, only a few hours since the last chapter was posted, but I really want to get as much in as possible. I think I can post two new chapters by Saturday. Here's the first one. Enjoy!**

I woke up the next morning feeling better than I had in a long time.

We made breakfast and continued walking, as usual, but this time we were all cheerier and more talkative. Percy was here. He was with Annabeth. The world was going to be okay.

We talked about the stags for a while, and after I told them about my dreams, they concluded that Artemis had done it to satisfy Kronos, and that she wasn't really trying to hurt us. Grover still looked stricken when he discovered they were Artemis's stags.

We made our way across Colorado, heading towards Denver, and before long we began to see civilization again. This brought our spirits up even more, and we forged ahead, determined to make it there by tomorrow. Our feet ached and we all needed some decent food.

When we stopped for lunch, I found Rachel. "Hey," I said.

"Hi," she replied, munching on dried beef.

"Are you upset?" I asked. When she looked at me with feigned confusion, I jerked my head towards Annabeth, who was polishing her knife.

She sighed. "Of course not, Percy. I'm happy for you. It's just…" She paused and glanced at me before continuing. "I know it would've never worked out between you and me, what with you and Annabeth and all, but I just wish…I don't know."

I nodded. "No, it probably never would've worked out with me and you," I said, staring at the sky. Then a slight smile crossed my face. "Now, Sparky…that's a different story."

She went pink. "What does that mean?" she snapped.

"Nothing, nothing," I said, holding up my hands in defeat. "But all I'm saying is if you would give him the chance to-"

"Oh, shut up," said Rachel. She walked away, muttering to herself.

Later, when Jacob and I were sparring, I suddenly brought his face close to mine. "So…now that I've got a girl, what about you, huh?"

We went through another string of blows. "What do you mean?" he said. "There's no other girls besides-"

I blocked his sneak attack and kept coming at him. "That's right," I said. "Rachel. Do you like her?"

His face went red, and he pushed me especially hard, knocking my sword out of my hands so hard it sunk into a tree trunk. "Swear you won't tell anyone?" he said finally, lowering his sword.

"Swear," I said, amputating mine from the bark.

He sighed. "I don't know," he said. "I mean, I do, but there's a lot of problems. She's older than me, she's mortal, and…" he stopped.

I said, "What?"

He turned even deeper red. "And…she kinda likes you."

"Don't be so sure," I said, winking at him. Then we walked back to where the group was resting.

Later that day, when we were walking towards Denver, a huge, oversized raven suddenly descended from the sky. It shot toward Rachel, and she screamed. Jacob yelled, "No!" and tackled her so the bird missed her head by inches. It squawked angrily, and Jacob waved his hand and caused a blast of lightning to vaporize it.

"You guys okay?" Grover called, but they weren't paying attention. Jacob was on top of Rachel, and for a minute, they stared into each other's eyes, unaware of anything else. Then Jacob suddenly cleared his throat and got up. "You okay?" he asked Rachel.

"Yeah," she replied, glaring at me for no apparent reason. Then we kept walking.

As we got closer and closer to Denver, I got more and more hopeful. We were almost there. If we could just make it a little longer, we could get some decent food, maybe get a hotel, find a ride to Frisco…

As night began to descend on us, Tyson and Grover suddenly stiffened. "Bad smell," murmured Tyson.

That's all the warning we got before the monsters attacked.

They came out of nowhere, hellhounds bursting out of the trees, four or five Laistrygonians coming out of the bushes, _dracanae _charging up from the valleys. They instantly surrounded us, and I knew we were about to be dinner.

I heard the flutter of wings, and two ridiculously ugly ladies came to rest in the middle of the group of monsters. Oh, great, I thought. They can fly now.

We drew our weapons as the monsters closed in. "Won't be needing those, dearies," cackled the first Gorgon. "You'll be dead before you can use them."

I moved forward, but Annabeth stopped me. "The Gorgons are bound by ancient laws," she said. "They can't attack until one of us does."

I had to think of a plan, and fast. A desperate plan formed in my head, and I went for it. I called to the sea. I felt the familiar tug in my gut, but I held it back for a moment.

"Go ahead, attack us," purred the Gorgons. "And we'll slice you apart before you can-"

I released the power. A wave of water crashed out of nowhere and took out a quarter of the monsters, leaving a wide gap in the circle. "Come one!" I yelled to my friends, who were sopping wet. We sprinted towards the city while the Gorgons screamed, "GET THEM!"

We ran as fast as we could, trying to find anything that could save us. But we were too tired and slow. The monsters chased us all the way to a narrow cliff.

We finally lost them then, but I could still hear them behind us, and I knew if we kept running, we'd never shake them. Jacob had the same idea. "Guys, run for it," he said.

"What?" I said.

"You've got to get out. They're trying to get me. Can't you feel it? I'm Kronos's last chance of changing the prophecy. He's the Lord of Time. If I willingly give myself to him, he can probably accelerate my age so that I'm sixteen. He knows I'm the only one who would even think about doing that. But I won't. You guys run. I'll make my last stand here. If I kill them, I'll meet you in Denver. If I don't…" he glanced down the cliff, where sharp spires of rock awaited at the bottom. Then he turned on Skysoarer. "I'll go down fighting."

"Sparky, no. You can't do this. Please." Annabeth was crying, and Grover had tears in his eyes too. I knew why. Thalia had probably made a similar speech when she'd sacrificed herself, nine years ago, on top of Half-Blood Hill.

He touched her shoulder. "I have to," he said. He turned to me, and suddenly the chilling lines of the prophecy rang in my head: _One must be lost to achieve your true goal._

Jacob nodded, reading my thoughts. "The prophecy comes true. You may be trying to save the Hunters, Percy, but your true goal is to defeat Kronos on your sixteenth birthday. That's what you have to do." He gave me a smile, and I smiled back. "Thank you for training me. I couldn't have had a better teacher."

"Jacob…" I started. I couldn't stand that he was doing this. The entire quest, I'd been worrying about who could be lost in the prophecy, and sometimes I'd secretly wished it would be Jacob. But now I realized I couldn't let him die. He'd become a closer friend than I'd ever dreamed, but I couldn't think of how to tell him.

He turned to Grover. "I know it doesn't look good for the satyrs right now, man, but I know, somehow, you'll pull through. Carry on Pan's legacy. It's what you were born to do."

Tyson was next. The Cyclops was sobbing; obviously he understood what Jacob was about to do. "I know it's tough for you, big guy," Jacob said, "But you're the bravest Cyclops in the world. Never doubt that."

Tyson crushed him in a hug, "I will miss you, Sparky," he said.

Jacob patted his arm, then turned to Nico. They stared at each other for a second, then Jacob clasped his hand. "I hope you find what you're looking for," he said. Nico just nodded.

Last was Rachel. Jacob looked down for a second, then said, "Rachel…"

Before he could say anything else, Rachel rushed forward and kissed him full on the mouth. His eyes widened, then gently closed as he put his arms around her waist. After a few seconds, they broke apart. "Kick some monster butt for me," she said, smiling. She wasn't crying...Rachel barely ever cried…but she looked terribly grieved. Jacob just nodded and let her go.

I could hear the monsters coming. They were getting closer. Jacob ushered us away. "Go!" he said. "Hurry!"

I took one last look back, then I dashed off into the tall grass. The city was maybe five miles away. We ran for about thirty yards, then we turned and watched. I put my arms around Annabeth, and she sobbed into my shoulder.

The monsters back Jacob to the edge of the cliff. One of the Gorgons growled something. Jacob gave a bold reply. Then the Gorgon screeched angrily and ordered the monsters to attack. He fought bravely for a moment, but seemed to gain that he could never defeat all of these monsters alone…we couldn't have if we had all been together. But then suddenly he screamed, a terrible cry filled with rage and power, ten times stronger than the one he had uttered on Half-Blood Hill.

There was a rumble of thunder so powerful it shook the ground beneath our feet. Lightning came from everywhere and nowhere. It struck not only Jacob's sword, but his entire body, his whole being. The monsters, the Gorgons, everything was sucked into the electrical void he had created. There was a final explosion, and I knew that none of the monsters would be bothering us for a long, long time.

The light emanating from his body faded. The grass around him was singed. All the monsters were gone without a trace, not even a little yellow dust.

But the power he had used, throwing his utmost being into an attack, was too much for his body. I watched as his eyes closed and a small smile crossed his face. Then he slowly fell back and tumbled off the cliff.

"JACOB!" screamed Rachel. I covered Annabeth's eyes as the boy's body hit the bottom of the cliff. You don't want to know what I saw then.

A single tear slid down my cheek. I brushed it away quickly. I didn't want the others to see that the great Percy Jackson was crying, especially Nico. We slowly turned and started running. I don't know where our energy came from, but in less than half an hour we were in the middle of Denver, everyone except me and Nico sobbing uncontrollably.

I looked around at the city. Then I finally turned to my friends. "Come on," I said. "We need to find a place to rest." I started walking down the street, and though I tried to push it away, the realization hit me so hard I thought I was going to pass out for a second. There were only six of us left. We were over halfway through the Quest to End All Quests. And Jacob Spark was dead.


	15. We Catch A Ride On A Chameleon

**Well, there you have it. Jacob's dead, the group is almost to San Francisco. Will Jacob return from the dead? How will Rachel react to his death? What's gonna happen when the group get to Frisco and tries to Hunters…and more importantly, Annabeth sees her parents again? You'll just have to keep reading…AND REVIEWING!**

We found a little café in Denver after about fifteen minutes. We sat down at a table and ordered pastries and drinks, although none of us were very hungry. No one talked much. Rachel stared at the table, her eyes red from crying. Annabeth had taken her hand and was talking quietly to her, which surprised me more than anything else.

"Maybe he's not dead," she said hopefully. "Maybe Zeus saved him, like Thalia."

Nico shook his head. "I felt his life ending, a few minutes before it happened, actually. But he's in the Underworld now. He's gone."

Rachel broke down again, and Annabeth glared at Nico, who gave her the "what-did-I-do?" look.

Grover finally looked up and wiped his eyes. "Look, I wish he was still here as much as you guys do, but he made a sacrifice for us, and now we've got to act on it. He wouldn't want us just sitting here crying over him while Kronos is tormenting the Hunters."

"Goat boy is right," said Tyson. "It is time to act." I looked at him, impressed.

"Well, the first thing we should do is Iris-message Chiron and tell him everything that's happened," Annabeth said. "Maybe he can give us advice."

"She's right," I said. "I'll do it. Annabeth, Grover, come with me. Nico, I need you to find a good hotel we can stay at for the night. Money isn't a problem." I winced, thinking I might regret that later, but I left Nico talking to the waiter and walked outside to the back of the restaurant with Annabeth and Grover.

Once we were out of sight, I willed air to become water. The dying sun barely gave us enough light, but I managed to allow the water vapor I had made to catch it so it made a rainbow. Annabeth took a drachma and tossed it in. "O goddess, accept our offering."

The drachma shimmered and disappeared.

"Half-Blood Hill," Annabeth requested.

The rainbow flashed and rippled, and then we were looking over the valley that was Camp Half-Blood. Chiron was standing on top of the hill, touching Thalia's tree and talking quietly to Clarisse.

"Chiron!" I called.

He turned, surprised, then he beamed when he saw us. "Percy! Annabeth, Grover, you're alive!"

"Um…yeah," said Grover, obviously a little unnerved by this statement.

"My apologies, but we were beginning to think you all had died a horrible death," Chiron said. We winced, but the centaur didn't seem to notice. "Are you all right? Where are the others?"

We told him our story, from the time we had been dropped off at Penn Station until Jacob's last stand on the cliff. I watched their expressions change from shock to confusion to finally grieving when we told them the fate of Zeus's son.

"Poor Jacob," said Chiron. "There is no braver way he could have died. We will honor his life as soon as you return. I am very sorry."

"He was a good kid," said Clarisse angrily. "It shouldn't have ended that way for him. I swear, if I get ever get my hands on Luke…" she stopped there, although I had a vague idea what she had in mind.

We nodded sadly. "Chiron, how are things at camp?" Annabeth asked nervously. "Is everyone okay?"

Their expressions grew grim. "We were just discussing that," said Chiron. "We have been preparing for war. Extra training is currently in progress. We have readied the pegasi and other magical creatures to transport us to Mount Tamalpais at any time. As soon as you need us, we will be ready."

He spoke as though we were war generals, and I couldn't help marveling at how much the upcoming war was changing things. Soon, we would be going against the Titan Lord's strongest forces, and if there was anyone I wanted behind me in that fight, it was Camp Half-Blood.

"We'll let you know," I promised.

"Good," said Chiron. "What are your plans now?"

"We find a way to get to San Francisco," said Annabeth. "And then we'll assault Mount Tam and free the Hunters. Hopefully, Artemis will rejoin our side again, and we'll be ready to face Luke and his army."

She sounded so determined, and I knew she had said _we_ on purpose. She wanted to be by my side for this, and I was so grateful I felt my eyes stinging again. It was also the first time she had called him _Luke_ instead of _Kronos_. I squeezed her hand in gratitude.

Chiron and Clarisse nodded. "Sounds like a plan worthy of Athena," said Clarisse. "Go get 'em, Wise Girl."

Annabeth smiled. Chiron said, "Well, keep in touch. Oh, and about Nico…"

But the effort of holding the water in the air was starting to strain me, and the final rays of the sun were sinking below the hills. I heard, "Mother…Nico…tell him…" then he finally gave up. "Good luck!" he called, then I finally let the water go and we were alone in the back of a Denver café.

--

We walked back into the café and found the others sitting at the table. "There's an inn about three blocks down from here," said Nico as we approached. "The manager says it's not too expensive, and plenty comfortable."

"Sounds good," I said. "Let's roll."

We paid for our pastries and left the café. On the way to the hotel, I told Nico and the others what Chiron had said, although I didn't mention what he had said about Nico that hadn't got through.

Nico nodded. "Sounds like a plan to me," he said. "But how are we going to get to San Francisco?"

We all admitted that we didn't know. We decided to postpone discussion until morning.

After a few minutes, we found the hotel: a ten story Hilton Suites, nothing grand, but not too shabby, either. Grover and me went in first, because we figured it would look suspicious if we all rented a room at once. We decided the cheapest would be just to get two rooms, and let the girls sleep in one and the guys in the other. Grover and I got a room each, then the others snuck in quietly and we crammed into the elevator.

Our rooms were on the same floor, which was good in case of an attack or anything like that. The room was simple: two double beds, a foldout couch, a TV set and DVD player, and one bathroom with a small shower. Nothing too fancy since the majority of us had stayed at the Lotus Hotel.

We took turns taking showers and changing into the fresh clothes we had stolen from Old Navy through manipulation of the Mist (I didn't like it, but one whiff of our clothes and stealing suddenly seems like a good idea). Then I kissed Annabeth goodnight and laid on the bed with Grover, while Nico slept on the couch, since Tyson needed a whole bed to himself. The bed felt so good after five nights of sleeping on a mat on the hard earth, and as soon as the lights were out, I was asleep.

I had trouble sleeping, mostly because Grover mumbled in his sleep and kept kicking me with his hooves, and Kronos tormented me with nightmares all night long. _Come, little hero, _he would say. _So close to your destination, and yet little do you know that you will have already failed before you get there._

That being said, I wasn't in a good mood when Nico hit me with his pillow and told me to get up.

We checked out of the hotel and walked onto the street. We passed by an electronics store, and I saw a TV blaring the news. It told of a group of teenagers causing attacks all throughout the country, from there attack in New York to Nashville, and they might have even been the cause of the nuclear explosion that occurred right outside of Denver the previous evening. The news reporter showed a blurry photo of us, and told the world that anyone who sees us should call the police immediately so that we can be arrested.

I gulped and moved quickly past the store.

We got out into the street and Tyson said, "Now what?"

"I guess we should find a taxi or something to at least get us into the-"

_BANG!_

Without warning, a giant green monster burst out of the street and cornered us in front of a store. It hissed angrily; it was a giant green chameleon, with beady black eyes, scaly green skin, and a long, pink tongue that suddenly lashed out.

"Duck!" Tyson yelled. We all jumped out of the way as the tongue smashed a huge whole in the wall of the store. The monster hissed and its scales changed from green to red and black. Its battle colors.

"This figures," murmured Annabeth next to me, disappearing with her knife drawn. I uncapped Riptide, thinking the same thing.

The monster lashed out again, sending three mortals flying. As its tongue came back, Annabeth tried to cut it with her knife, but it was too fast. Then the chameleon turned and struck once more, this time hitting Rachel. She had nothing to defend herself with, so she just flew back a few feet and landed on the street.

"Rachel!" I cried, but I didn't have time to make sure she was okay. The monster made a triumphant sound in its throat and it changed to a dazzling shade of gold, so bright that I could barely look at it. It spun and its tail came at me. I barely got out of the way. Then Nico managed to crawl up its leg and jump on its back. It reared and bucked like a rodeo bull, but Nico managed to stay on.

"Percy!" Grover said. He looked determined. "It's from the Wild! Another one from Artemis! If I can talk to it…"

The tongue lashed out again and he didn't get the chance to say anything else, but I knew what he was thinking.

I looked around frantically and saw a hardware store nearby. The window had been smashed through, and I saw a coil of thick rope among many other items that had been thrown off their racks. I ran over and grabbed it. The storeowner didn't protest; he was too busy screaming and running around in circles.

I ran back to the giant reptile. Nico was somehow still hanging on. "Nico!" I called, tossing the rope to him. He reached up and caught it, understanding. He threw the coil around the chameleon's neck. Then Grover and Tyson stayed at the front, distracting it, while Annabeth and I secured the rope around its muzzle. It groaned in protest and turned a deep shade of crimson, trying to break through, but Annabeth was good at knots and they were second nature to me being the son of the Sea God.

"Whoa, boy!" Nico said, pulling on the two lengths of rope like a horse's reign. The monster reared one final time and then gave up. Grover walked up and stroked its head, whispering to it in a series of hisses and gurlgly sounds. After a moment, the monster turned green again and calmed down.

Annabeth reappeared next to me and looked at Grover. "What does he say?" she asked.

"He says Artemis commanded him to do this against his will. He didn't want to, but he says if we take off the muzzle and stop attacking him, he'll take us to Frisco," said Grover happily.

"Are you serious?" I said. "That's awesome! Good going, G-man." The others nodded and added their praise, and Grover blushed.

Rachel walked up, scraped up and bleeding. "That's it," she declared. "I need _some _kind of weapon."

Grover tended to her and the others while I cut through the rope on the chameleon's mouth. I stroked the chameleon's head, and its pink tongue came out and licked my face. It reminded me of the hellhound, Mrs. O' Leary, who had belonged to our ex-swords master, Quintus, last summer. But she had gone to the Triple G ranch last November, when the weather on Long Island got too cold for her. I missed the gigantic hellhound a lot, even if she did slobber on me and pin me to the ground every time she saw me.

When everyone was slightly healed, we all jumped on the chameleon's back. It could carry us all easily, even with Tyson on it. The mortals were still running around, screaming like crazy. "We should do something about them," Annabeth commented. Nico and I nodded. Together, the three of us snapped our fingers, and I thought hard of all the mortals believing this had been caused by rebel vegetarian teenagers trying to stop the killing of animals.

All the mortals on the streets went crossed-eyed and babbled stupidly for a second, then they shook their heads and started talking about how wild teenagers were these days. They didn't appear to see us or the giant chameleon we were on, and Grover quickly hissed instructions to the chameleon. It pulled out of the streets and began bounding out of the city, heading west towards Utah.

--

Riding a twenty-foot long chameleon is less than comfortable, but it was even faster than the Gray Sisters' taxi. Within two hours, I could see San Francisco rising up before us. Mount Tamalpais was in the distance, black mist swirling around its peak so thickly you couldn't see the upper quarter of the mountain. It made the city seem slightly less beautiful than the last time I had seen it, but it was still breathtaking.

"Should we go to your parents' place?" I asked Annabeth as the chameleon bounded alongside the interstate.

She swallowed, and then nodded. "I guess so," she said. "It'll be okay. I mean, me and my dad have been doing better, but still…"

I took her hand and stroked her knuckles with my thumb. "Don't worry," I said. "I'll be right there with you."

She looked at me gratefully, and I kissed her, knowing she needed my reassurance. A year ago, or even a week, she probably would have smacked me for doing that, but now she just smiled and leaned against me. She gave Grover directions to her dad's place, and he relayed them to the chameleon. It dropped us off a couple of blocks off, and we thanked it walked toward Annabeth's house as it bounded off into the trees to rejoin its giant reptile friends.

We found the Chase's house quickly and I rang the doorbell. There was a shuffle of footsteps, and then the door opened to a pretty Asian woman who was counting bills and didn't look up for a minute. "Finally, you know I ordered that pizza over half an hour ago, you might want to think about…" she stopped when she saw us. "Annabeth?" she said. "Percy, Grover! What are you all doing here?"

"Hi…Mom," said Annabeth. "We sort of need some help."

She looked confused, but she just said, "Please, come in." We walked inside and did quick introductions, since she only knew three of us. "Your father's upstairs, playing with his war toys," she said. Annabeth grinned, and I had to smile too. Annabeth's father was an…_interesting_ character.

Mrs. Chase turned to the staircase. "Frederick!" she called. "Our daughter is here!"

"What?" came a muffled yell from above. There was some stumbling, and then Dr. Chase burst from the stairs, still wearing his aviator's cap and goggles. "Annabeth!" he said, coming down the stairs and hugging her tightly. "Thank goodness you're safe! Is everything all right? Who are all these people?"

"I think we should talk in the den," said Mrs. Chase. "Bobby and Matthew are at a friend's house, so they won't be here to bother you. Please, come sit down."

We obeyed her. The pizza man finally came a few seconds after we were settled, and Mrs. Chase brought in two extra-large pepperoni-sausage pizzas. "We're big pizza people," Annabeth murmured to me. I smiled.

"Please, help yourselves," said Dr. Chase, pulling off his aviator's cap and taking a slice for himself. When everyone was sitting down, he said, "Now, what can we help you with?"

We looked at each other, and then Annabeth, with some help from the rest of us, told the Chases pretty much everything, from the picnic at Goode to Jacob's arrival to the quest to the Parthenon and the strange limo. We told him about the graveyard, me getting together with Annabeth (which was indescribably uncomfortable, but Annabeth felt like it needed to be said), of Jacob's sacrifice, of Denver and the attack this morning, and finally of our ride into the city.

Now, you'd think, after a story like that, they'd say something like, "Wow, you guys are amazing!" or "That sounds so dangerous! I can't believe you're still alive!"

Instead, Mrs. Chase rushed forward and hugged her stepdaughter and me. "Aw, you kids are together now?" she said. "That's so cute!"

"Mom!" protested Annabeth. My face felt hot.

"Now, wait just a minute, young man," said Dr. Chase, looking sternly at me. "We need to have a talk about…"

"Oh, Frederick, they're kids, for heaven's sake!" said Mrs. Chase. "Leave them be."

Dr. Chase stared at her, then nodded reluctantly. "So, what's your plan now?" he asked us.

We looked at each other. "We assault Mount Tam," said Nico finally. "And rescue the Hunters."

"Sounds like a pretty big deal for six teenagers," said Dr. Chase. "Are you sure you don't want help?"

We shook our heads. "We need to do this on our own," I said. "It's my quest…_our _quest." I looked at my friends. "We have to save the Hunters and return Artemis to the gods, and avenge Jacob's death."

Dr. Chase still looked concerned, but he nodded. "Well, it sounds like you've got a lot to talk about," he said. "Come on, I'll take you upstairs, and you can discuss your tactics."

**Well, there you have it! I leave for camp this morning, right after church, but as soon as I get back I'll begin writing the climax of the story! Stick with me, people! We're almost there!**


	16. Our Rescue Mission Fails Completely

**THIS IS IT, PEOPLE. I'm back from camp, which was amazing, but I don't have time to talk about that. This is the beginning of the end. The final chapters are here. So, please, keep reviewing and egging me on, because I really need to finish this!**

Two and a half hours later, we had it all planned out.

It had taken a lot of arguing, several awkward moments, and a yelling session between me and Annabeth that had ended with us making out on the floor right as Dr. Chase came in. You don't even want to know. But the important thing was, we had made a plan- a simple plan, but one that I knew would work.

We spent the next thirty minutes going over the whole thing twice more, making sure everyone knew what we were doing. Then, finally, we were ready to go.

"We'll have to wait until it gets dark," Annabeth told her father. "Then I can drive us there, if you'll let me have your car."

I gulped. We had sort of blown up Dr. Chase's last car we had driven, and he wouldn't be eager to give us another one.

He seemed to remember this. "I'm not sure if I trust you driving into Mount Tam with five other teenagers in the car, Anna," he said. "Besides, you're barely sixteen."

"Dad!" Annabeth said, making herself taller so she looked him right in the face. "This is a matter of saving the entire world, not the city, not the country, but the _world_, do you hear me? And I am not going to have the entire world given into the hands of the Titan Lord because my father wouldn't lend us his car. _Understand?_"

Dr. Chase looked startled, but he just nodded. "Okay," he said in a small voice.

"Good." Annabeth looked pleased with herself. "It's all set." She walked over and asked her mother if she would bake some cookies. Dr. Chase shook his head and began walking up the stairs.

Rachel caught his arm as he was about to begin his ascent. "Dr. Chase, do you have a bow and some arrows I could borrow?" she asked innocently, which a wicked look in her eyes.

--

At eight o' clock that night, we stole into the Chase's van silently. Bobby and Matthew were asleep, Mrs. Chase told us, so we'd have to be quiet. She said it like the fate of the world was second to her babies getting a good night's rest. I sighed. Mothers.

We got in the van and Annabeth started the engine. In some ways I felt like I should be driving- I mean, this was my quest- but as the instructor said, my driving skills "needed improvement". Meaning as soon as I managed to _not_ knock over every single cone or break someone's leg, I'd be good to go.

The Chases wished us luck and said they'd be expecting us by midmorning, then they shut the door as we pulled out of the driveway and began driving out of the main part of the city.

The van was silent, but none of us felt even the least bit tired. Traffic wasn't too bad, but I still felt tense, and I wanted to get there as quickly as possible.

Before long, we began to see the faint outline of Mount Tam in the distance. It was dark out, but I could still see the thick mist swirling around the mountain. I gulped and told Annabeth to speed up.

She looked at me with concern. "Are you okay, Percy?"

"Yeah," I said. "It's just…this might be the night I face Luke. And…I don't feel like I'm ready."

She bit her lip. "I don't know if you're ready either. But we'll all be right beside you if you fight him. Count on that."

The others gave approval, and I felt better, but the thought still clawed at my heart like an angry tiger.

We drove around to the main entrance of the mountain, avoiding the Garden of Hesperides, whose guard dragon had almost killed us the last time we'd tried to go that way. Annabeth had done some research, and it seemed that an anonymous someone had drilled a strange expanse of tunnels through the mountain's core recently. The mortals didn't notice anything, of course, but we could clearly see the wide gaping hole drilled into the side of the mountain. We parked a ways away and got out of the car.

I drew Riptide from my pocket. Annabeth had her bronze knife, and Grover his club. Nico had his black sword at his side, and Tyson would be fighting with his bare hands. Rachel had acquired a bow and a quiver of arrows from Dr. Chase. It turns out she had been taking private archery lessons with Chiron since she had come to camp, which would have been useful earlier if she had spoken up, but I didn't mention that to her.

We made our way towards the hole in the mountain. There were two guards posted on either side of it, regular mortals, with machine guns at their sides.

We came around the side of the mountain, and I turned. "Everyone know the plan?" I said. They all nodded. "Luke's shirt?"

Annabeth held up the Camp Half-Blood t-shirt that had once belonged to Luke. "Check."

"Air horn?"

"Check."

"Skeleton key?"

"Check."

I turned determinately toward the entrance. "Let's roll."

Seven heads peered around the side of the mountain where the guards were waiting. I waited until their backs were turned, then I signaled to Rachel. She emerged out of the shadows, lithe as a cat, and fired two arrows. The guards went down without a sound. I tried not to look at the bodies and hurried on.

We went through the entrance hole and found a tunnel leading down. We descended, hoping it would lead us to the dungeon. As we went, Grover and Tyson took deep whiffs of Luke's shirt. They could use the scent to warn us if he was getting close.

We didn't see anything but a hallway with doors branching off on either side, but we did find a helpful map nailed to the wall with a YOU ARE HERE sign and everything. We went past the various torture rooms, weapon storages, and jazz clubs, and soon found the dungeon, on the bottom floor. We exited the hallway…and found a hoard of hellhounds growling at us.

Tyson and I reacted first. He took a couple of nearby rocks and threw them at the hellhounds, cracking their skulls. Meanwhile, I felt a familiar tug in my gut and released it. In a few seconds, the corridor was flooded. The water didn't touch us, but it drowned all the hellhounds.

Annabeth cursed. "We have to hurry," she said. "This way!"

She sprinted off to the right, and we followed her.

We made our way down to the next floor, where a couple of Laistrygonians were chatting and swinging enormous clubs that made Grover's look like a twig. I moved forward, but Rachel stopped me. "I can handle them," she said. She strung two arrows and let the first one fly. It struck the giant in the temple, and he burst into yellow dust.

"Hey!" yelled the second giant, seeing us. Then Rachel shot him in the forehead. He growled angrily, but didn't disintegrate.

"Duck!" Nico yelled as a huge hand came down to swat us away. We hit the deck and the hand passed by. Then Tyson raised his fist. "You will _not_ hurt my friends," he said, and punched him in the nose. The giant wailed in pain and vaporized.

I clapped Tyson on the back and ran forward. I heard footsteps from above and grimaced. This was where the air horn came in. I saw an elevator next to the staircase and I ran towards it. I opened it and hit the top floor button. Then I tied duck tape to the air horn so it went off continuously. I quickly threw it into the elevator right as it closed. Hopefully that would provide enough distraction to keep the guards busy.

We went down the staircase and finally reached the dungeon. It was colder down here. The metal door was locked. Tyson offered to smash through it, but we figured that would make too much of a racket. Instead, Nico took out his skeleton key, which he assured us would undo any lock. He inserted it into the lock, and sure enough the door swung open.

We went into the dark dungeon. Rows of cells were everywhere. Rats scuttled along the floor, carrying half-decayed bits of food. Most of the cells were empty, but one larger one contained a group of girls in faded silver jackets. One of them, I was relieved to see, had spiky black hair.

"Thalia!" I said.

The girl slowly raised her head, and her eyes widened when she saw me. "Percy?" she said in disbelief. "Annabeth, Grover, Nico! What are you all doing here?"

The other Hunters were stirring too. They looked half-starved; their eyes were sunken and they were white and shivering. When they saw us, some of them blinked uncomprehendingly, as if they couldn't believe we were actually here.

"We're here to free you!" said Annabeth, as Nico began working on the lock. "Are all of you here?"

Thalia nodded. "They put us all in one cell. Three of us have died, but the rest are alive."

I caught my breath. So some of them were dead. I had seen them being tortured in my dreams, but I had never thought Kronos would actually _kill _them, not with Artemis there. "Does Artemis know about this?" I asked.

Thalia shrugged. "She used to come visit us, but not anymore. We think she's given up on us."

Nico finally got the lock, and we pushed the door open. "Annabeth ran in and hugged Thalia tightly. "Oh, Thalia, I've got so much to tell you!" she said as she held her old friend.

"First things first," I said. "We've got to get you all out of here!"

I helped the Hunters get up and dust off their clothes, which were covered with dust and grime, and get the ones that had trouble standing to their feet. "Everyone ready?" I asked. "Okay, let's go."

I turned around and found myself face-to-face with a twelve-year-old girl with auburn red hair.

"You should not have come," said Artemis sadly, tears in her eyes. Then the walls of the dungeon suddenly melted, and we were standing in the throne room of Kronos.

Instantly, guards and _dracanae_ with machine guns and javelins surrounded us. They formed a circle, and though we drew our weapons, I knew there would be no escaping this time.

Then a couple of monsters parted and Luke Castellan strolled forward. He was dressed just as I'd seen him in his dream: a gold and black shirt, black pants, and a long black cape that flowed behind him. He was smiling wickedly, but when he spoke, I was surprised to hear only Luke's voice.

"Welcome, friends," he said. "It's good to see you all again."

He signaled to the guards, and they left us and took their positions along the wall and the exits. Then he walked up the pedestal where his ornate throne sat and began pacing around it. Artemis remained by the pedestal, looking pained.

"So," Luke said finally. "You thought you could just barge in here and steal my prisoners away from me without me being any the wiser?" his tone was light, but I saw rage burning in his eyes, which I suddenly realized were strange: one was blue, like Luke's, but the other was gold, like the Titan Lord. "Well? Didn't you?"

"This is wrong, Luke," I said. "Let the Hunters go. You have no right to them."

"Don't I?" replied Luke. He held out his hand, and his half-bronze scythe materialized out of thin air. He stroked it as if it were his loving pet. "Artemis is under my command, is she not? And I suppose, if she is, then so are her servants?"

"The Hunters," Artemis said, her voice strained, "Are _not _my servants. They are my warriors and protectors. And I would be greatly pleased if they were freed."

"Silence, witch!" Luke snapped. Artemis winced, and I expected Luke to turn into a jackalope or something. But nothing happened. Luke turned back to us. "Did you honestly think you could do it, Percy?" he said softly. "Did you really think you could break into _my_ domain and take what is rightfully mine?"

I spat at him in disgust. Luke sneered. Annabeth looked a mixture of suspicion and worry. "What's wrong with you, Luke?" she asked. "You've done some bad things, but even you have never resorted to torture. Look at these girls."

She was right. Most of the Hunters had terrible scars on their legs, and arms. One girl who looked about ten had a gash that stretched from the edge of her nose to her neck.

For a split second, Luke's face changed, and I thought I saw his gold eye flash blue. Then it returned to normal. "It was necessary," he said, waving his hand. "Our little goddess here was less than enthusiastic to help me out with killing you all, and I thought she needed some…motivation." He chuckled, and I wanted to rip that sneer off his face.

"Please, stop what you're doing," Rachel said pleadingly. "You killed Jacob, and three of the Hunters. When is this going to end?"

"It will end when little Percy here is dead," said Luke, glaring at me. "And I will not rest until he is. Do you wonder why Kronos has left me? No, he is still here, inside me, waiting to come out. Don't you see, Percy?" he said, staring at me. "My body is merely a sanctuary for Kronos until he is accustomed to this world again. And once I have killed you, and the prophecy never comes true, Kronos can detach himself from me and take his place on this throne as King of the World!"

Luke laughed, and I stared in shock. I had never even considered that Kronos could separate himself from Luke someday. And all he had to do was kill me, which right now looked like a pretty good possibility. "You can't avoid prophecies, Luke," I said. "You should know that by now."

He ignored me. "So," he continued, "I offer _you_ a choice, goddess." He pointed to Artemis. "Kill these intruders now, or I will destroy your Hunters."

"What?" Artemis cried in shock. "No! You can't!"

"Do you doubt my powers?" said Luke. His left hand suddenly flashed and hummed with dark power. His scythe flashed greedily in the light, as if it were hungry for human flesh.

"No, but…" Artemis faded for a moment. "Lord Castellan, you cannot do this! We had an agreement…"

"Make your choice!" said Luke angrily.

Artemis looked from me to Luke, then back to me. "Artemis, you don't have to do this," I said pleadingly. "Help us escape. We'll get out together, and you can rejoin the Olympians."

Artemis looked at me sadly. "I'm sorry, Percy," she said, "but I must do what I can to help my Hunters."

She raised her arms, and Thalia cried, "No!"

But right then, the windows on the left side of the throne room suddenly smashed. Bright flashes of light struck the monsters along the wall, and they vaporized. Thunder boomed from outside. I hadn't noticed the storm gathering.

The lightning flash revealed the silhouette of a figure perched on the windowsill. The figure braced his knees and leapt, flying into the middle of the throne room and landing in front of the pedestal. He drew a flashlight keychain from his pocket and turned it on, and it transformed into a shimmering bronze sword. He turned around to look at us, and I couldn't believe my eyes. It was Jacob.

"Hey," he said. "What's going on with you guys?"

"Sparky!" said Annabeth and Rachel together, rushing forward and embracing him. "How could you possibly be alive?" said Annabeth, blinking back tears as she hugged him.

"It's a long story that I don't have time to go into right now," Jacob replied. They let go of him, and he turned to face Luke.

Luke's surprised look quickly returned to a sneer. "So, you really did come back," he said mildly. "I'd heard rumors, but I didn't believe them. Oh, well. You won't be staying here long. I guess I'll just have to kill you too, Thunder Boy."

Jacob told Luke to do something that made even Nico blush. Luke's eyes flashed angrily. "So that's how you want it?" he said. "Fine. You'll die first!"

"Don't be so sure," Jacob replied. "I've learned a few new tricks." He brought his hands in close to him, then turned them, palms outward, and pushed towards Luke.

A gust of wind blew so hard that it almost knocked me off my feet. Luckily, I managed to stand my ground. The monsters were a different story. They smashed into the walls, flew out the windows, and were occasionally struck by bolts of lightning from the storm outside.

Luke held onto his throne as he struggled to his feet. His scythe had blown away; I didn't know where. He glared at Jacob. "You think you're the only one that can make some wind?" he yelled over the monsoon. "Well, you were wrong!"

His gloved hands hummed with energy as he raised them, but what he would have done I never saw, because just then a stag leapt out of nowhere and sent him flying against the wall. Then it fell on top of him and passed out.

"What?" he cried, struggling to get up. "WHAT IS THE MEANING OF THIS?!" He tried in vain to get the stag off him while Artemis ran to us; the wind didn't seem to affect her at all.

"You have to get out of here!" she said. "You must hurry! I've stalled him as long as I can!"

"How are we supposed to get out of here?" Grover asked.

In answer, Jacob wound his hands together and pushed towards the wall. It smashed, leaving a gaping hole in Mount Tam. I could hear the storm brewing outside.

"I can't take everyone!" said Jacob. "I'm sorry, but I think eight is the most!"

Artemis nodded. "It's all right. I can protect the Hunters for a little while. But you must hurry and come back to save them!"

"So we didn't save them," I said. "We failed."

She touched my shoulder. "You did not fail, young one," she said. She turned to Jacob. "How many did you say you could take?"

He blinked, struggling to control the wind he had conjured. "Eight, I think."

Artemis looked at her lieutenant. "Thalia, you must go too."

"What?" Thalia said. "No, Lady Artemis, my place is here, with the Hunters. I must…"

"Thalia, I need you to go," Artemis said softly. "I need someone on the outside whom I can trust. Can I trust you?"

Thalia gulped. "Yes, Lady Artemis."

The goddess grasped her shoulders. "Then go, all of you, and assemble the Olympian's army. Battle is coming. I feel it growing stronger every day. It is up to you all to win this for the gods." She pushed us toward the hole in the mountain. "Go!" she said.

We said goodbye, then Jacob made a path in the wind so we could reach the hole. Far, far below, the ground awaited us, and I could see San Francisco in the distance. "You're gonna have to trust me on this!" Jacob yelled. "On the count of three, we're going to jump!"

"Jump?" Thalia said in a small voice. I felt for her; Thalia was terrified of heights.

"One…" We tensed, and grasped each others hands… "Two…" I watched the cars race by like ants, and I heard Luke groan as he finally threw the unconscious stag off of him… "Three!"

He pulled us toward the edge, and we jumped. Suddenly the wind was racing through my hair, my hands grasped Annabeth's and Tyson's, and we plummeted toward the ground as Luke's roar of outrage, now mixed with the voice of Kronos, shook the Mountain of Despair down to its foundations.


	17. I Visit The Everglades

**HELLO, PEOPLE. I'M BACK! And I'm ready to write the end! Sorry it's taken me so long to write this, but I had major writer's block. Anyhow, this is the best I could come up with for speeding up the time until Percy's 16th, and I think it turned out pretty good. Enjoy!**

**Percy's POV**

The ground came rushing to meet us as we fell towards the earth, and I figured any second we were all going to be flattened. Everyone continued screaming except Jacob. He waved his hands around wildly, and suddenly I felt a powerful updraft pick us up from our fall. It carried us smoothly across the field toward the van.

Finally, Jacob gently set us down in front of the car. "Hurry!" Annabeth said, ushering us all inside. It was a tight squeeze, but we managed to get everyone in the van. Then Annabeth quickly drove off while thunder still crashed overhead.

We didn't say a word until we pulled up at the Chase's house. We got out of the car and Annabeth burst through the front door without bothering to knock. Her parents must have been asleep, because the house was quiet. We came in and sat down in the living room.

It was Nico who finally broke the silence. "Welcome back from the dead," he congratulated Jacob. They grinned at each other, and I figured they knew something we didn't.

"Okay, can someone please tell us what's going on?" Annabeth cried indignantly. "How are you still alive, Sparky? You died – we saw you."

"I'm glad you're so thrilled I'm back," Jacob replied, raising an eyebrow at her.

Annabeth went red. "No, it's not that, it's just – that – oh, I'm so confused!"

Tyson was poking Jacob curiously. "You are not dead," he observed.

"Okay, okay," said Jacob, holding up his hands. "Well, it wasn't really my doing. It was the panel that I happened to have the night I died. It was Hercules, Marin Luther King Jr., and Hades himself. They talked and argued about my death for quite a while. Hercules thought I should be allowed to come back, since I had died so nobly and I was needed for the quest. MLK said that it was unfair for me to cheat death so easily, and that the prophecy had said one would be lost, and they shouldn't argue with the Oracle. Then Hades finally ordered them to shut up and looked at me. He told me there were ancient laws that stated when a hero died selflessly, for the ones he loved, he could choose to rejoin them and live once again. Or I could go to Elysium right then. It was a hard choice, I'll admit, but in the end I decided to come back. Then Hades touched my forehead and I was back at the cliff where I'd died."

"But how'd you get back here so fast?" Grover asked.

Jacob snapped his fingers and a little tornado appeared on his palm. I could actually _see_ it, and when I looked closer I realized I was seeing the tiny ice shards floating around inside. "When I came back, I could control wind currents," he said. "I don't know how. Maybe Zeus blessed me or something."

At this, Thalia straightened. She had been white as a sheet before – I guess she was still shaken from the whole jumping-off-Mount-Tam thing – but now she looked cross.

"Oh, well, I guess you guys haven't met," Annabeth said. "Sparky, this is Thalia, the lieutenant of the Hunters who's a daughter of Zeus. Thalia, this is Jacob Spark, your…half-brother."

The two rose and sized each other up, not hostilely, but just curiously. It wasn't until now that I realized how much they looked alike. Besides their hair, their features were similar: tight lips, eyebrows that curved down slightly, and those electric blue eyes that glowed with pride. When they shook hands, an electric current went down their arms and mingled at their hands. We gasped, but they just grinned at each other.

"So there really is another one," Thalia said.

Jacob nodded. "Nice to meet you, sister."

"Right back at you."

When they had sat down again, I said, "Okay, so maybe we didn't come up with the _best_ possible plan to save the Hunters, but we did save Thalia, which is better than nothing. Right now, we have to focus on war preparations. We have to contact Chiron and tell him that Camp Half-Blood has to come down here, like, _now._ The Titan's army will be assembling, and they'll be preparing for battle."

Annabeth nodded. "We probably only have about three or four weeks before the army attacks."

Three or four weeks…my heart jumped. Today was June twenty-eighth. My birthday was August 3rd. If it really took that long, we might be fighting on the day of my sixteenth birthday.

We kept on discussing tactics for a while, but I wasn't really paying attention. When Tyson started yawning and we decided to let him sleep, and Annabeth and Thalia went to contact Chiron. Grover and Nico went to the fridge to find something to eat, and Jacob was about to go with them, but Rachel grabbed his arm and pulled him into an empty room. I smirked, then I left and went outside. I had to think about everything.

Four weeks…I wasn't ready. The final war against Kronos was staring me in the face, and I knew I wasn't good enough. I didn't have enough training. If I faced Kronos, I would fail. I would die.

I didn't know why it was hitting me now, instead of earlier, before we went to Mount Tam, but suddenly my knees grew weak and I felt like breaking down out there in the yard. I couldn't do it. I knew I couldn't. How was I going to get enough training to face Luke in just a month…?

"Percy Jackson."

The voice made me jump, because it wasn't one I recognized. I turned. Standing behind me was a tall figure wearing a long cloak with a hood that covered her face. I could tell it was a girl by her voice, and the fact that her long hair fell out of the hood. She kept her head lowered, and for some reason the hood obscured her face, so I couldn't see it clearly. _Magic,_ I thought.

The woman gave me a stiff bow. "By the order of my queen Hippolyte, you and your comrade Jacob Spark have been formally invited to journey to the Land of the Amazons, to train with our people in preparation for the battle against the Titan Lord Kronos. You will reside with us for only as long as we shall train you, and afterward you will be escorted back to your own land. You have twenty-four hours to arrive in our kingdom or we will consider our invitation declined." She bowed stiffly again, said, "Please consider it," and then dashed off as quickly as she had come.

"Wait!" I said. "What-"

But she was already gone.

--

When I came back inside and told the others of my encounter with the strange woman, they all stared at me disbelievingly. "An _Amazon_ invited you train with her people?" Thalia exclaimed, shocked. "Oh my gods…but that's impossible! The Amazons never leave their kingdom, and even if they did, they've never invited males to train with them before!"

"Are you sure it was an Amazon, Percy?" Annabeth asked.

I nodded. "She said 'The Land of the Amazons' and 'By order of my queen Hippolyte'".

"This is great!" Grover said, grinning. "With a little Amazon training, you guys will be ready to face anything! They're supposed to be some of the greatest fighters in history!"

"It would be stupid to refuse," Nico agreed. "Plus, if you guys were to train with them, you could maybe convince them to come back and fight with us."

This idea rejuvenated everybody, and soon they were all begging the two of us to go.

"Hold up!" Jacob said. "First of all, where _is _the land of the Amazons?"

"Think, Sparky," Annabeth said. "It's going to be a place that's big and bland, a place that no one would go to unless they had a really good reason. And it would have to be a place where the Amazons could hide out and have good resources…"

"The Everglades," I guessed. She nodded.

"Well, that presents another problem," Jacob persisted. "How the Hades are we gonna get to Florida in twenty-four hours?"

Suddenly something strange happened. I felt a presence next to me, and when I looked, I saw the hooded guy who had given us the limo in Nashville. He reached into my pocket and held up the sand dollar my father had given me for my birthday. "It's time," he said, in a voice that sounded strangely familiar, then he handed it to me and disappeared.

Meanwhile, the others were debating with Jacob whether he could carry them on wind currents ("Not across the whole United States!"). None of them seemed to have noticed the man. I said, "I can get us there."'

They all stared at me. "Are you sure?" Rachel asked.

I nodded. I didn't know how, exactly, but I knew I could get us there. Annabeth saw the sand dollar, and she nodded, understanding.

"Well, then, there's no time to waste!" said Annabeth. "We've got to get you guys down to the water, and fast!"

--

It was early morning in San Francisco when we finally got down to the bay. We stood on a large dock, making sure no one was around, and then I took out the sand dollar and held it between my palms. _Father, please help us get to Florida, _I prayed silently. The sand dollar began to glow like a pearl, and I dropped it into the water.

For a moment nothing happened. Then, as I watched, a huge, pearly white bubble began to form in the water. It rose up, and the top opened. It was similar to the ones Annabeth, Grover and I had used in the Underworld, but it was big enough to hold two people, and I knew it would travel in water instead of on land.

We said our goodbyes. I clapped Grover and Nico's hands, got a bone-crushing hug from Tyson, and then kissed Annabeth long and hard, wishing that I never had to let her go. "I'll come back," I whispered in her ear. "Promise."

She nodded. Jacob kissed Rachel a final time, and for the first time I saw her blinking back tears. Then I turned to all of them. "You guys are our last hope to face the Titan's army," I said. "Call everyone you can think of, and assemble them for battle. We'll begin war as soon as we return." We waved to them and jumped into the huge bubble. It closed back up at the top, and then dove into the water. It glowed slightly as we began to race through the bay, bathing the ocean in a milky white light.

--

**Jacob's POV**

I'd never been in a giant bubble traveling through the ocean at hundreds of miles an hour before, and I have to say it was quite an experience.

I didn't know how we were getting to Florida by water, as it seemed kind of impossible, but the bubble didn't seem to travel like most underwater transporters. It zoomed along the ocean floor, not allowing us to see much of anything, and when we did it was only a glimpse of a flounder or some kelp. All the same, it took us four hours to reach the Everglades. We spent the time talking about swordplay, battle plans, and Kronos. When the bubble finally resurfaced out of the water, I was tired, hungry, and a little seasick.

Unfortunately for me there wasn't even a town nearby. The bubble had dropped us off in a seemingly endless field of sawgrass prairie. The only thing that stood out to me were a few small islands of trees in the sea of grass. It was the Everglades, all right.

Just when I was wondering what the Hades we were gonna do now, a woman was suddenly standing next to me. I jumped; the woman had appeared out of nowhere. It might have been the woman Percy had mentioned before, but her hood was down now. She had dark skin, long brown hair tied in a complicated ponytail, and startling green eyes; not sea green like Percy's, but darker, more vibrant green, like the leaves of the trees.

"You came," she commented, staring at us unflinchingly. It was impossible to hold the stare; it ate at you until you felt like she could read your every thought. Percy nodded, and the woman gave the tiniest of smiles. "I am sorry I was curt before," she said to him. "Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Thalestris. I am the general of the Amazon armies, and preceded only by Queen Hippolyte." She sounded proud, like she felt it was necessary to tell us everything about her ranking.

"Armies?" I said. "Since when do the Amazons have armies? You guys have been hidden out here for centuries. Why would you need an army?"

"My queen will explain all of this," replied the woman. "For now, follow me." She turned, and began to run through the prairie. We followed her.

Thalestris was fast. If my muscles hadn't needed to stretch so badly after being cramped up in that bubble, I probably couldn't have kept up with her. As it was, we were lagging behind the whole time and eventually I just picked up a wind current and glided across the grass to keep up. I loved my power over wind. It felt as though the air was my servant, constantly at my side and ready to help me whenever I needed it. I would have to teach Thalia after this war was over. A power like this was too cool to keep to myself.

Thalestris eventually stopped at an island of trees that looked no different than the others to me. The wet, marshy ground got more solid under our feet as we walked under the trees, and the air felt slightly cooler.

Thalestris stopped by a tree and turned to us. "Before I show you our kingdom, you must swear to me that you will never tell anyone of our dwelling. The Amazonian kingdom has been kept secret for many years. You are the first males that have ever been invited into our city. You must never reveal its location to anyone. Swear on the River Styx."

We exchanged a glance, and then swore. Thalestris nodded. "Then come," she said, and touched the bark on the tree. Suddenly, an entrance opened in the undergrowth and trees, melting out of nowhere just like Thalestris. It seemed to be a tunnel, because I could see light coming from the other end. She walked swiftly through it, and we followed.

We came through the tunnel, and Percy said, "Oh my gods."

"Welcome," said Thalestris, really smiling for the first time. Welcome to the kingdom of the Amazons."


	18. Jacob and I Get Personal Trainers

**I'm trying to keep the updating steady, but it'll be a little harder now that I've started school. Enjoy :)!**

**Percy's POV**

We stood on the outskirts of a huge city. Soft green grass carpeted the entire metropolis. Trees grew on either side of the streets, big trees with delicious fruit growing on them. There were no cars to be seen, and the city was eerily quiet, not what you'd expect with a place this big. But the most incredible thing of all was the buildings.

They were huge, tall skyscrapers, like you would see in New York, but they appeared to be built entirely out of wood and stone. There was no hint of metal on them. It was breathtaking.

As Thalestris led us into the city, she explained that they never used artificial foundations for the buildings, and that each building was modeled after one that was somewhere in the world. As I looked around, I saw she was right. I spotted the Empire State Building, its point rising high above the clouds, the Eiffel Tower, and a smaller replica of the Taj Mahal.

There were no men in the city. We passed dark-skinned women every few minutes, muscular and powerful looking like Thalestris. Their eyes narrowed when they spotted us, and they examined us critically before snorting and walking on. I suddenly felt very alone in this place.

We finally came to a replica of Buckingham Palace, and Thalestris stopped. She ordered us to take off our shoes and socks. We didn't protest, only because the soft grass look really appealing.

"Will we get them back?" Jacob asked as we handed her our shoes.

"If you like," Thalestris replied, shrugging, "But by the time your training with us is done, you won't need or want shoes anymore."

With that, she set them down outside the gate and walked through it on the path leading up to the palace. I noticed for the first time that all the Amazons were barefoot. I thought about what she'd said as we followed her towards the palace.

We came through the front doors to reveal a huge foyer. Amazons walked this way and that, not paying attention to us as they rushed into different halls. Jacob and I followed Thalestris down the main hall until we came to a huge set of double doors. There were two women standing guard on either side of them. They nodded to Thalestris and stepped aside. The Amazon opened the doors and stepped inside.

We entered the room and a cool breeze blew in my face. The room wasn't as big as I'd expected, but it was still roughly the size of my apartment. The walls were covered with paintings of Amazon women, all wearing silver crowns. Past Amazon queens, I guessed. There was no ceiling, so warm sunlight shone down from a blue sky covered with puffy clouds. There was also a circle of grass in the middle of the room, and in that grass sat a woman.

She competed with Calypso and Aphrodite as one of the most beautiful women I'd ever seen. She was dark-skinned, like all the other Amazons, but her hair was golden blonde, like Annabeth's. She had a flawless face, soft lips, and when she opened her eyes as we entered I was startled to see they were fierce amber, with dark flecks in them so they looked like the fur of a leopard. She wore a silver crown like all the women in the pictures: it was very simple, no jewels or anything, but the cords of silver were as tightly interwoven as tree roots.

Thalestris straightened. "May I present, the Queen Hippolyte."

Hippolyte rose, and the ten or so Amazon women I hadn't noticed behind her stepped forward. The queen wore a simple green robe, but around her waist she wore a leather belt that had big emeralds and other jewels on it. When she came near me, I felt the power coming from the belt almost overwhelm me. Yep, that was a powerful thing, all right.

Thalestris kneeled and gestured for us to do the same. When I looked up, the queen was smiling. "Rise," she said. Her voice was soft and kind, but with a hint of power behind it too, as though she didn't want people to think she was a pushover by her looks. We obeyed her.

"Welcome to the Land of the Amazons," Hippolyte said. "I am overjoyed that you accepted our invitation. Was your journey here safe?"

It took me a minute to find my voice. "Yes, um…Your Highness," I said. "It was good. Thank you for inviting us here." It sounded really stupid, like she had invited us to a party or something.

But Hippolyte merely smiled. "I know that the time comes for you to face your destiny, young Perseus," she said, "and so I thought that our warriors could teach you a thing or two to…further prepare you."

I heard smirks from the Amazons behind Hippolyte, as though they doubted whether they could teach _us _anything. Suddenly Jacob spoke up. "Wait…you're Hippolyte?" When she looked at him, he winced. "Sorry, Your Highness, I just thought that…that Hercules had killed you."

Hippolyte shook her head. "No, Jacob, I am not that Hippolyte," she said, "I am merely named after her." She touched the belt around her waist. "This belt has been passed down for generations from one queen to the next. It is our…trademark, you might say, and it is how we honor our ancestor Ares."

Looking at Hippolyte, I doubted that she could be related to Ares in any way. But before I could ask her about that, Thalestris suddenly erupted. "It makes no sense, my queen!" she cried. "Why did you send for these two? Why couldn't _he _come too?"

The queen's leopard eyes flashed angrily. "Silence, Thalestris!" she snapped. "Unless you want to lose my trust once again and lose your position of my general. You know perfectly well why I could not summon him."

Thalestris looked like she was about to protest, but then she lowered her head shamefully. Hippolyte turned back to us as if none of that had just occurred. "I promise that we will train you diligently, and teach all the secrets that we can, for I know that you will need all the help you can get to face the Titan Lord. My warriors are ready to instruct you. Will you respect them and all they teach you, and promise never to betray these secrets to anyone outside this kingdom?"

"I swear, Your Majesty," I said. Jacob repeated the oath, and Hippolyte smiled again. "Very well. Are you ready?"

We nodded. "When does our training begin, ma'am?" I asked.

Hippolyte raised her hand, like she was about to start a race. "…_Now_."

--

Even years later, when I tried to recall my training with the Amazons, I could only conjure up a few faded memories. The fact was, even though I remembered every technique they taught me, the training itself was all a blur, as if I had been put into some kind of trance. The only thing I always understood was that I was training to fight Luke. That was what kept me going.

…I remember an Amazon teaching me how to climb trees by finding folds in the bark and then making my body as light as possible. It took me a while, but I also remember sitting at the top of the tree while she nodded approvingly.

…I remember sprinting through the fields, feeling like my lungs were going to explode, while the Amazon alongside me said, "Fight it! Fight the exhaustion that holds back your body to what it is really capable of. If you can ignore the voice that tells you to quit, to give up, that you can't fight anymore, then there's no limit to what you can do!"

…I remember the sword-fighting lessons…oh, man, they were something. The Amazons knew how to do things with a sword that I had never thought possible. They taught me how to throw Riptide so that it would spin through the air, lopping off at least three monsters' heads in the process, and then return to my hand. They taught me that the sword was alive, it had thoughts and feelings just like me, and they showed me how to communicate with my sword so that we could anticipate each other's next move. Soon, I felt a connection with Riptide that I'd never had before. It was like we were exchanging thoughts while we were fighting, discussing what we should do next. It was awesome.

And there were so many other things they taught me too, things I couldn't even describe, they were so incredible. With each passing day, I felt stronger, more confident, and a voice began to speak quietly in my head: _I can do it…I can beat Luke…_

Strangely, I don't remember eating or sleeping while I trained with them. Maybe I didn't need it. Maybe you can live on the air of the Land of the Amazons alone. I don't remember exactly when my training ended, but at one point all my lessons and sessions were suddenly whirling around before my eyes, and then, _bam! _Suddenly I was back in the throne room with Hippolyte, except now there were at least a hundred Amazons in the room with us.

I immediately knew I had been lifted from my trance; my thoughts were, not clearer, exactly, but more like personal. I was no longer connected with my trainers. I was me again. The training was over.

Hippolyte was smiling at us. "Congratulations!" she said. "You have completed your training with us. I admit, I had my own doubts, since you are males, but you've done it. You are now the equal of an Amazon, with all our gifts and abilities."

The old Percy might have been creeped out by that, but I felt different…calmer, as though nothing could surprise me. I looked at Jacob beside me. He looked so different now, for a second I almost didn't recognize him. His general expression, which had once been playful, yet determined, was now gone. It was replaced by a look of wisdom, as though he had seen everything there was to see in this world and he knew about it all. Basically, he looked grown up. I wondered, did I look the same?

"I have thought about what to reward you with for this, and I have finally decided," said Hippolyte. "Draw your swords, heroes."

We obeyed, and I uncapped Riptide. Now, the sword felt like it was a _part _of me, as though I could have a conversation with it if I wanted to. We held out our swords, and Hippolyte touched her belt. The power flowed from it, and I felt it in the air around me. "Let this be an eternal reminder of your training with us, and let you forever remember that we are the ones who allowed you to bring the downfall of the Titan Lord."

For a minute, nothing happened. Then, suddenly, I gasped. My sword was changing. Beautiful wave patterns were being etched across it, like the tide coming up on the shore. Now, when I moved Riptide to the right, it looked like the waves were rolling in. When I moved left, they were being pulled back to the ocean. I looked at Jacob's sword, and saw it was marked similarly, only with lightning bolts instead of waves. Either way, it was insanely cool.

We bowed deeply. "Thank you, Queen Hippolyte," I said. "We will honor your training for the rest of our days."

The queen nodded. "Then it is time for you to leave, and us with you."

I raised my eyebrows. "You are coming with us, Your Majesty?" Jacob asked.

Hippolyte nodded. "We know that even with your training, you will not be able to face the Titan's army on your own. So we will come with you, and fight for the gods. It will be our privilege."

I was overjoyed. With the Amazons on our side, we might stand a chance. "Thank you so much," I said. "You have done so much for us. I am overwhelmed."

The queen rose from her circle of grass. "Then prepare to depart. I am taking almost all my warriors with me, and we leave at sundown."

We left Buckingham Palace and walked through the city for a final time. I had to admit, I was going to miss this place. I'd miss the stone monuments of buildings all over the world, and I'd miss the grass under my feet and the training with Thalestris and the others…

We gathered at the outskirts, where the tunnel was leading back into the mortal world. Thalestris offered us our shoes, and I realized she had been right. Now, when I put my socks on, the wool felt hot and uncomfortable, and the shoes felt like they were just slowing me down. Besides, I didn't need shoes. The skin under my feet had grown firm and hard, and it felt comfortable on stone, on grass, even in thorns. As I threw the shoes away, I knew I would be spending a lot of the rest of my life barefoot.

Hippolyte opened the tunnel, and I took one last look at the city, savoring the memory of it, and then followed the Amazons through the tunnel and back into the Everglades.

Once we were all outside, I suddenly wondered how we were going to get back to San Francisco. When I asked Jacob about this, an Amazon who looked about our age gave a small laugh. "Did you not listen to my queen?" she asked. "You are like us now. Run, run like you never have to stop!" And with that, we took off with the Amazons, sprinting at superhuman speed. Soon, we began to see towns and cities again, but the Mist made it so they couldn't see us, or maybe they thought we were in a triathlon or something. Now, when I ran, I could go ten times faster than before with a quarter of the energy. It was incredible. I felt so alive, so free.

We made our way north and then west, and when we finally stopped to rest, we were in Missouri. I was tired, but if I had tried to run like that before, I would be dead right now, literally.

While we rested, Thalestris came up to me. "I wanted to say…you did well," she said. I must have looked surprised, because she continued, "I was not happy that only you two had come here, but I enjoyed training you. I only wish…I only wish he could have come as well…"

"Who's he?" I asked, but she just sighed and walked away. I stood there, confused.

Jacob, standing beside me, said, "You mean you haven't figured it out?"

"Figured what out?" I asked, hopelessly lost.

"Percy, it's kind of obvious. Thalestris…she's Nico's mother."

--

We kept on running over the next two days, traveling across America on foot, the fastest cross country team in history. When I finally saw San Francisco in the distance again, my heart leapt. I couldn't wait to see everyone again.

I originally was going to make my way to the Chase's house, but I didn't have to go that far. In a huge field, about five hundred yards from Mount Tamalpais, was an army campsite.

I mean, there were tents pitched everywhere. Humans, satyrs, and centaurs were walking among them, talking with one another. A huge fire pit was in the middle of it all.

When we came up over the hill and the people spotted us, they stared, awestruck. We jogged down the hill towards the campsite, and I quickly found Chiron staring at me as the Amazons continued to pour from the hill.

"Percy?" he said. "Jacob, what…what is this? Have you brought the entire Amazons army with you?"

"Chiron!" I said, hugging him. "Yeah, we have! They agreed to come back and fight with us!"

"They have? That's wonderful! We'll need all the help we can get! My goodness, boys, look at you. You look five years older."

"Percy?" said a voice behind me. I turned to find Annabeth and Grover staring, mouths agape, at us. "Percy, that is you!" Annabeth rushed toward me and flung her arms around my neck. I hugged her back. "Oh, Annabeth, I've missed you so much…"

"I've missed you too," she said, gently kissing me. "You've been gone more than a month!_ A month? Had I really been gone that long? _"But what's with all these people?"

"They're the Amazon army!" I whispered to her. "They've come to fight with us, Annabeth! They're going to help!"

"What? That's awesome!" Grover exclaimed.

"Are the campers here?" I asked.

"Yes, they're all here!" Annabeth said. "And the centaurs, too! And my parents, and yours…"

"Mom and Paul are _here_?"

"Come to the tent," Grover said. "We've got a lot of catching up to do."

Meanwhile, Hippolyte was talking to Chiron. "Yes, we can provide our own tents," she said. "And we will be ready to fight whenever you call us."

"I'm afraid it will have to be soon," Chiron replied grimly.

"Why, Chiron?" I said, letting go of Annabeth. "What's wrong?"

He looked at me. "It's Typhon, boy," he said. "He's escaped from Mount St. Helens, and he's making his way here as we speak."


	19. The Battle of Mount Tam part I

**I AM SO SORRY GUYS! I know it's taken me a while to update, but I've been busy with school and other stuff. I finally hit 100 reviews!! YAY! That really was my goal all along, so thank you guys for reading and reviewing and helping me reach my goal! If I write a sequel, I'll go for 200!**

**It's war time, people! And time for some shocking revelations and a character death! Who is it? You'll have to read to find out!**

I followed Grover and Annabeth to a large red tent, my head spinning with this news. Typhon was free. And he was coming here to fight with the Titans. As good as our armies were, I wasn't sure we could beat him. Typhon was terribly powerful.

I entered the tent. There were benches and chairs in a circle around a little fountain, obviously for Iris-messages.

We sat down as Chiron entered the tent with a confused Clarisse. She glared at me. "I hear you got some training."

I nodded. "Little bit."

She smirked. "Bet I could still whip your butt." _In your dreams_, I thought, but I didn't say anything; this wasn't the time for quarrels. Suddenly two more people entered the tent that I knew very well.

"Mom!" I cried, rushing forward and hugging her.

"Oh, Percy!" she said, embracing me. "I've missed you so much! I've been so worried something happened to you!" She squeezed me until I thought my eyeballs would pop out. Then she examined me thoroughly. "What happened to you?" she said, amazed. "You look so…different!"

"It's a long story," I replied, smiling. Then I turned to Paul. It was sort of awkward at first, but then Paul grasped my shoulders and smiled at me. "Hello, Percy," he said. "It's good to see you again."

"You too," I replied. "But what are you guys doing here? Shouldn't you be at home?"

"I felt it was necessary to bring them, so Kronos could not use them against you," Chiron explained. "Besides, Paul was a good fighter in his days at Camp Half-Blood. I feel that we will need all the help we can get."

That put an unsettling feeling in my stomach. I was glad that they were here, but I felt like they would be safer at home in New York then here right before a battle. Nevertheless, I trusted Chiron's judgment.

Jacob entered the tent, too, with Thalia and Nico, who marveled at our appearance just like everyone one else. Then, finally, the last to enter, Hippolyte and Thalestris, came in. We all took seats. "We're going to have a war meeting," Chiron told me quietly. "We need to discuss plans." He turned and addressed everyone. "As I'm sure you have all heard, Typhon escaped his prison less than twenty-four hours ago and is now making his way here, to join the Titan's army in what is surely to be the greatest battle in the history of the Olympians. Should we win, and Kronos is defeated, we shall enter a new time of peace and happiness. However, if we lose, the Western civilization will be destroyed and the Titans will take over, and we will enter the Golden Age once again."

"Which is bad," Grover added.

Chiron nodded. "We have mustered together allies from across the country: Camp Half-Blood, the centaurs and pegasi, the Cyclops from Poseidon's forges, including Briares the Hundred-Hand One, and now the Amazons, from the Everglades. With this army, and four children of the Big Three, I think we might stand a chance."

"What about the Hunters?" Thalia objected. "I must go and save them. With the war to distract him, Kronos won't care about them anymore."

"I cannot allow that," Chiron replied. "You must stay here and fight with us. If you try to save them, you could be killed."

"But Chiron –"

"No buts!" Chiron said sternly, and Thalia reluctantly backed down. "Now, we will assemble ten teams of assorted warriors. I will lead the team of archers. Jacob, you and Clarisse will lead the two teams of aerial combatants."

Jacob and Clarisse nodded.

"Percy, you, Thalia and Hippolyte will lead the main teams of warriors. You will be our main attack force, and you are the most critical to our success."

I nodded gravely, feeling anxiety well up inside me. I was the main attack force. The most critical to winning. It took all my Amazon training to remain calm and not start freaking out. "The remaining four teams will be led by Paul, Thalestris, Annabeth, and Beckendorf, who is currently working on an armor situation. They will be our second wave of warriors. Now, is everyone clear on the team they are leading?" When we all nodded, Chiron gave a small smile. "Now, this is how it will work…"

We reviewed our whole battle plan, with suggestions of our own that we had come up with on the quest and some that Thalestris and Hippolyte had from their Amazon battle tactics. Just when we began to finish, Cardinna Reeves from the Apollo cabin stuck her head in the tent. "Chiron, the Titan's army is coming down from Mount Tam!"

Chiron expression turned stony. "All right. Start distributing armor. We go to war at sunhigh!"

--

**Jacob's POV**

A real war.

The exhilaration I had felt when the _dracanae _attacked Half-Blood Hill was nowhere to found now. In its place was a sickening sense of dread. People were going to die today. Lots and lots of people. Innocent campers who didn't have to fight, but were throwing themselves into this war to fight so that Luke wouldn't win. It filled me with anger.

I found Rachel after the meeting, talking to Tyson as they strapped on their armor. When she saw me, she looked like she was going to pass out. I kissed her for what felt like forever, and when we finally broke apart she was smiling. "You're back!" she said.

I nodded. "Just in time. You're fighting?"

"I'm joining the archers. Chiron thought it was best."

"There's nothing I can say to stop you?"

"No."

I smiled. She was my girl, all right. Still, I was concerned for her. What if she died today? Would I be able to live with the pain of knowing I had willingly given her up?

I put my armor on while my apprehension grew stronger by the minute. I turned on Skysoarer and admired the new engravings on it: lightning bolts forking through the bronze that seemed to strike from different angles when I swung my sword. The Amazons had taught me that the sword was a real, living thing, and that I could connect with it for us to better communicate in battle. Now, I exchanged my feeling of apprehension with Skysoarer, but I only felt an excited pulsing coming from the sword. I sighed, but I couldn't blame it; it was an instrument of death, after all, built for this very purpose.

As I walked to the edge of the camp, I saw a ten-year-old girl from the Aphrodite cabin in a little suit of bronze armor, and my heart broke.

Then I came to the edge of the battlefield and took my first look at the Titan's army.

Now, you may think you've seen an army before. You might've been a little frightened. But I promise, you haven't really been scared until you've seen Kronos's army.

The entire field was a sea of black. Every last warrior, monster and Titan were clad in black armor. There was every monster I could name, and some that I couldn't even name. At least a thousand, maybe even more. I felt my heart sink into my boots. Things were not looking good.

"Big army, isn't it?" said a voice beside me. I turned; Thalia was standing there, staring out at Kronos's army with vengeance brimming in her eyes, which were identical to mine.

"Hey, I'm sorry you couldn't go save your friends," I said. "It wasn't fair."

She shook her head. "I'm still going," she said. "I'm not letting Chiron stop me."

For some reason, I wasn't surprised. Maybe I had expected nothing less from my half-sister. I nodded. "When will you go?"

"As soon as my troops start fighting," she replied, and I could tell from the hard edge in her voice that she wasn't changing her mind.

"Then I'll go with you," I said. She looked at me, surprised, and I shrugged. "It'll be easier if we travel over air. And I can't let you go out there on your own."

She nodded slowly. "Okay," she said, "It's a deal. Thanks." We slapped hands, and I felt the current go through my arm again. I grinned.

"I'll find you," I said. "I'll be in the air anyway. Fight hard while you can."

"Ditto."

That's when I heard the conch horn sound in the distance.

--

We gathered in our teams. The front three went forward first, a powerful armada of campers, Amazons, centaurs, satyrs, and Cyclops. Briares was hidden behind a mountain somewhere. He would join us with the follow-up teams. Then the archers, with bows in hand, marched behind them. The other four teams came next, bigger and burlier than the first, and with more brutal weapons, and finally me Clarisse and me led our troops forward. Everyone except me was on a pegasi. Chiron had offered me Blackjack, but I had turned him down. I wanted to show them what the son of Zeus was really capable of.

We marched through what was now a battlefield, a grassy place that would soon be stained with blood. Mount Tam's peak, cloaked with black mist, glared down at us, as if it couldn't wait to see the bloodshed that was about to occur. Then, when the Titan's army was so close I felt like I could smell the monsters' disgusting breath, we stopped.

The two armies were only about a hundred yards apart. Both sides glared at the opposition. From my vantage point, I could see everything. I saw Percy, shifting in his bronze armor, Riptide glowing at one side with its wave patterns while Tyson's shield hung heavily from the other. I saw Nico, standing beside his mother, Thalestris, the resemblance obvious now that they were next to each other. I saw Rachel, standing among the other archers, her flaming red hair standing out from the others among her. My heart ached, and I wanted to run to her and tell her not to fight. But I held my position. I had a job, just like she did.

I could just see the top of the head of a huge creature, a huge Laistrygonian whose black eyes glinted wickedly. He spoke in a bellowing voice that sent chills down my spine. "This is your last chance!" he cried. "Surrender now, and you will be enslaved and spared your lives by the mercy of the Titan Lord Kronos and his servant Luke Castellan. Resist further, and we shall destroy you all. Look at yourselves. Look at how the gods are using you. Join us, and we shall forge a great new age, like no one has ever seen before!"

"Never!" cried the voice of Thalia. "We will fight to defend the gods! The evil of Kronos knows no bounds. Why should we serve him? We shall fight for our freedom!" The army took up the cry, and I had to admit it sounded pretty impressive coming from Thalia. We shook our swords and shouted.

The Laistrygonian's voice shook with anger so much when he spoke that he almost made my voice die out. "Then you relinquish your last chance and seal your DOOM!" Suddenly the Titan's army yelled and charged forward. Thalia screamed, and our army did the same. The first warriors crashed together, and the Battle for Olympus finally began.

Our first wave of warriors started off pretty well. We hit the Titan's army with tremendous force, forcing them back and sending splatters of yellow dust everywhere. I spotted my friends, fighting like there was no tomorrow on that battlefield, and I felt a rush of adrenaline pumping into my veins.

But our initial force didn't last long. The Titan army had the advantage of numbers, and it was quite an advantage indeed. I watched as our warriors downed a monster or other opponent, and three more sprung up in its place. Soon, our army was forced back, and I saw our warriors beginning to fall.

Then Chiron cried, "Archers, aim and fire!" I watched as the archers aimed their bows, and then thousands of arrows shot up in the sky and fell on the Titans army like a deadly rainshower. Most of the army recovered, but the archers quickly re-strung their bows and fired again.

Clarisse yelled, "Heroes, take to the skies!" as the last of the second volley of arrows downed at least fifty of the Titan's force. The pegasi whinnied as the warriors pulled on the reins and they shot into the sky. I closed my eyes and summoned the wind, and a light breeze blew on my back. Perfect.

With a _whoosh_, I picked up the current and shot into the sky with the others. We soared over the army, while the Titan's archers saw us and began firing arrows. But the horses were well trained. They either dodged the arrows or flew out of range, while the heroes on their backs decapitated monsters with their swords and javelins.

As for me, I flew up high in the sky. Thunder was rumbling, and I knew it was the gods supporting us, even though they couldn't help us directly. With that in mind, I sent my father a silent prayer. _Please, Lord Zeus,_ I thought, _lend me your power for this one day, and let me direct the lightning as you do._

There was a blast of thunder, and a bolt of lightning struck the tip of my sword. The bolt vanished quickly, but my sword was now charged with electrical power. I grinned. Time to show these chumps what happened when you mess with a son of Zeus.

I flew back down and directed my team over the Titan's army, and they swung their swords down and lopped limbs off human and monster alike. Skysoarer was the master bolt in my hands, sending blasts of lightning on the army so powerful they created huge craters in the sea of black warriors. I came lower to the ground. A hellhound jumped at my face, and I ran my sword through its chest. Two opposing half-bloods shot arrows at me. I sent a blast of lightning through my hands that not only diminished the arrows, but also knocked the half-bloods unconscious. For a second I felt a pang of guilt, but then it was gone, replaced by a hunger to end the grief of my friends.

The Amazon training had done its work: I flew around with tireless energy, causing lightning to rain down on the thousands of monsters while swinging Skysoarer with such precision that I could determine every muscle, every organ I was going to cut through before I even raised the sword. I saw the Laistrygonian commander towering above the others, laughing as he pummeled our warriors with his bare fists. Then I saw Tyson- brave, brave Tyson- rushing toward the giant, jumping on him and punching him in the nose. The giant roared and try to throw the Cyclops, but Tyson held on and wrestled the monster to the ground, where they were locked in a fury of punches and blood. Anger roared through me, and I landed with a _thud_ in the trampled grass next to the wrestling pair.

The Laistrygonian finally managed to shake off Tyson and give him a punch in the stomach that sent him sprawling back, one eye looking dazed. The giant laughed cruelly- and turned to find my sword point at his throat.

"You _don't _mess with my cousins," I said, and lopped off his head.

As his body hit the ground and evaporated into yellow dust, I rushed over to Tyson. His face was covered in blood and he looked confused, but when he saw me he straightened. He took one look at the pile of dust where the giant commander had been and gave his big Cyclops smile. "Thank you!" he yelled over the clang of weapons.

"Your welcome!" I yelled back, and then I flew back up into the sky. Now I could see Percy from below. He was surrounded by a torrent of water that swirled around him like a whirlpool, and as he moved Riptide, the waves acted with him, lashing out at the monsters with amazing force.

I had been so lost in the turmoil of the battle of the battle that I'd almost forgotten about Thalia. The sun was high in the sky and she'd be getting impatient. I soared over the battlefield and began to look for her. As I flew, I passed gruesome sights: a Demeter camper, lying in the mud with his arm a mangled, broken heap. A pegasi, lying dead and forgotten as warriors jumped over its corpse to face the monsters. And the worst sight of all: Travis Stoll, being carried away on a stretcher by two Apollo campers back to the tents. Grief tore through my heart like a knife; his brother would be devastated.

I soon found Thalia, surrounded by monsters and fighting her heart out, as I had expected. Luckily, I turned up at just the right moment. She was being overwhelmed, and a _dracanae_ had just struck out with her javelin and made a large cut on her shoulder. I landed beside her and she pressed my back to her own. We raised our weapons and stared at the monsters about to annihilate us.

"Think we can take them?" I asked her over my shoulder.

"Gee, I don't know," she replied sarcastically, "Might be tough if one more shows up."

"Are you being sarcastic?"

"Ooh, very good. At this rate you'll be doing algebra by next week!"

"Oh, just shut up."

Then we jumped into the cluster of monsters and fought with all our might. Some of them put up a fight, but most just fell to the might of our weapons. Soon we were sorrounded by a ring of yellow dust. "Okay, let's go," I told Thalia.

I picked her up with me, and we flew over the Titan's army toward the entrance to Mount Tam.

--

**Percy's POV**

I was the ocean.

The water flowed through my fingers like it was part of me. I controlled it with ease, and sent it lashing out on the opposition. I was slowly moving deep into the Titan's army, and no one seemed to be able to stop me. But one question continued to ring through my head: Where was Luke?

I had searched everywhere, searched for a blonde head and gold-blue eyes among the black-armored foes, but I couldn't find him. Could it be possible he wasn't involved in this fight at all, and he was still waiting for me at the top of Mount Tam? I wasn't sure. Surely he wasn't afraid the gods would interfere if he came out? Chiron had said that it was one of the Titan's biggest advantages: if Kronos was in Titan form, the gods could come and help. It was only that he was constrained in Luke's body that held the gods back.

I glanced up at the sky momentarily and saw Jacob flying overhead, with Thalia by his side. They were soaring over us toward Mount Tam. I cursed them both in my head. What did they think they were doing? Were they really going to disobey Chiron and go try to save the Hunters? That was their fatal flaw, their pride and need for control kicking in, making them think they could handle anything. Still, they were going to get themselves killed. I shook my head and tried to forget them and focus on the fight.

The tide was slowly turning. We had been struggling before, but now we were slowly, very slowly, pushing the army back, felling monster after monster with arrow and sword. We had long since released our second wave, and they were prevailing. The Amazons were our biggest help. They flew through the air, their weapons flashing wildly, taking out three enemies with one strike sometimes. It had taken a while, but we were slowly beginning to take back the fight. I felt a glimmer of hope begin to rise in my chest.

Then I heard the most terrible roar I had ever heard and saw the Titan Typhon walking toward the battlefield.

**Jacob's POV**

We soared through the main entrance. There were no guards – I supposed Luke didn't have warriors to spare. We came into the tunnel and immediately found the entrance to the dungeons. We landed and went down the stairs.

Thalia beat me to the door and blasted it open with a coil of lightning. The flying didn't seem to have weakened her this time; she was too determined. We walked through the door and several frightened faces looked up at us from a cell down the room. "You came back!" a little girl cried joyfully, her cheeks sunken from hunger and a bruise on the side of her head.

"Yes, and we're here to free you!" Thalia replied, as I blasted open the cell door. "Come on, quickly! There's a battle going on!"

"You should've seen what they did to us after you left!" another one said. "They hit us with rocks and didn't give us food for three days and told us if we ever did it again we'd be shot-" the others began to speak too, all at once, when suddenly their voices were drowned out by a terrible roar.

The roar sent chills down my spine. The very sound of it almost stopped my heart, and I felt a huge tug inside me to panic, to give up, to realize there was nothing I could do and that my efforts were meaningless…

"What is that?" one girl asked, the fear plain in her voice.

Thalia answered her while looking at me. "It's Typhon," she said. "He's arrived."

Typhon. The Titan's name caused fear to clutch my heart like an icy hand. I remembered my training, and took deep breaths, allowing calmness to come over me and melt the hand away gently. The Hunters were a different story. They started whimpering and some tried to go back into the cell. But Thalia ushered them back out. "No, come on, we've got to get out of here!" she said.

"They'll be none of that, dears," a voice said behind me.

I turned to find the Gorgons pointing their knives at my chest, their ugly faces twisted into evil smiles. Their wicked eyes lit up when they saw me. "Well, well, if it isn't the boy who brought an end to us the last time!" she cackled. "I can assure you, boy, it won't happen again."

"Don't count on it," I replied automatically. How could the Gorgons be alive? The force I had used on them had killed me myself. If they could survive that, I felt I had a reason to be nervous.

"No, it won't happen again, because we're going to kill you and your little sissy right now!" the other Gorgon said. "Imagine, both the kin of Zeus, dead! Won't Lord Kronos be so pleased."

"Yes," said the other one, "it will be nice to have his respect again."

Then they raised their weapons.

"Girls, get out," Thalia said urgently. "Go. Hide."

The Hunters obeyed, moving swiftly past us and out the door. The Gorgons took no notice of them. That was their first mistake.

"I think we'll kill the girl first, and then pin the boy down and kill him very slowly." The Gorgon licked her lips hungrily, chuckling to herself. Then they moved forward. Thalia and I ran forward to meet them, and our weapons flashed in a shower of sparks.

**Okay, look guys, I tried to squeeze a whole bunch into one chapter, but the fact is this is just as far as I'm willing to go. Go to the chapters and click on part II, it'll be the same chapter though. I'm sorry I couldn't post the whole thing.**


	20. The Battle of Mount Tam part II

**Percy's POV**

Imagine a man ten, no, a hundred times bigger than you, taller than even a mountain. Got it? Now imagine that that man's head is the same size as yours, except he has a hundred of them. And imagine that when you look at the heads, they seem to change every time you blink: sometimes they're human heads, sometimes snakes, sometimes lions.

If you can imagine that, you have a vague idea of what Typhon looked like.

He walked slowly by the mountain, glaring down at us like we were little ants he wanted to step on. He seemed to hiss and roar at the same time. He slowly began walking through the battlefield, stepping on scores of warriors with every step.

The minute they saw him, our warriors almost fled in terror. It took all of our persuasion to convince them to keep fighting. I myself was terrified. Typhon could squash me without a second glance. The more I looked at him, the more I wanted to run for my life…

_Snap out of it, _I told myself sternly. _Your friends need you._ I concentrated, calling out to the sea. In an instant it surrounded me, a torrent of water rushing through my hair and skin. I willed it to grow, become faster, stronger. Soon the huge twister of ocean was nearly twenty feet high. I rushed toward Typhon as he came across the battlefield.

He was reaching down, picking up bronze-clad warriors and tossing them in his mouths. I rushed toward him in the whirlpool, throwing all of its force into the Titan's chest.

He didn't even stumble. His hundred heads blinked slowly and glared down at me, like I was annoying him. Then he roared and picked up another warrior, an Amazon this time.

I concentrated all my strength, and the water slowly closed around the lower half of Typhon's legs. I wound it around his gigantic calves, then I pulled myself out of the water and closed my outstretched hands into fists. I watched as something misty appeared in the middle of the torrent and spread rapidly across the Titan's legs and down to his feet. The water was freezing.

New trick, I thought. Thanks, Dad.

Now Typhon was really angry. His lion heads looked down at his legs, which were suffused in ice. The heads became snakes', and he tried to shift his feet through the ice, but to no avail. I was starting to feel really confident, when suddenly the Titan bent over like he was going to throw up. And throw up he did, but not your usual contents.

Lava poured from a hundred mouths, dripping down to the ground and spreading heat rapidly into my face. The ice melted instantly, and the Titan hissed/roared in triumph. I was forced to dive out of the way of the lava, climbing onto a large boulder near the face of Mount Tam. I gazed up at the mountain peak, where I could imagine Luke laughing at me while he watched the show.

_Come on, Jacob. Where'd you run off to?_

--

**Jacob's POV**

"Thalia, watch out!" I yelled, as I met the Gorgon's dagger with Skysoarer. Lightning crackled through the sword and made her long black hair stand up funny, but she held on, twisting her dagger through my sword and trying to reach my heart.

I jumped away as my sister dodged the other hag's talons. We were fighting our hearts out, but the Gorgons weren't falling back. If only I had a wind current down here, I thought, I'd throw them against the walls until their guts spilled. As it was, I could only manage a little electricity every now and then. It was frustrating.

Suddenly the Gorgon spun toward me and dipped the dagger towards my stomach, then feinted back to my neck, then to my stomach again. I was forced to switch to my left hand to counter the blow, and my wrist was nearly displaced with the effort. Desperately I reached a hand toward the Gorgon's face, willing the sparks to come again, but they would not. The hag cackled and struck at my face.

Instantly my half-blood senses caused time to slow down, my ADHD making me forget everything else for a moment. I turned my face so that the dagger missed me by inches, then I raised my sword and cut off the Gorgon's hand with all my might.

She yowled and clutched the stump, falling on the ground and writing in agony, but she did not disintegrate. I should have killed her, right then, but I was distracted by Thalia and the other Gorgon. They were both fighting valiantly, but Thalia was being backed up towards the wall. I rushed over and struck at the Gorgon's neck. She saw me at the last second and shied off my sword with a flick of her knife. We slowly backed away from the wall as we continued to fight her, and now we seemed to be winning.

After a minute, she suddenly raised her hand. "Enough, heroes," she said. "You have won. Spare me from further torture."

For a moment I was relieved, but then suspicion hit me. Something was wrong. I could feel it. Thalia could sense it too, and she realized what it was a second before I did. She turned around, wide-eyed, and I spun around too, just in time to the see the other Gorgon raise her unsevered hand and throw her dagger at my chest.

I didn't have time to think. One second the knife was flying through the air towards me, the next there was a body in its path. I watched with horror as the dagger flew through the air and sank cleanly into Thalia's heart.

--

**Percy's POV**

Just when I was beginning to think retreating would actually be the best choice, two dozen girls in silver jackets emerged from the entrance to the mountain. The Hunters! I couldn't believe it. I ran towards them as they collapsed with exhaustion. "Are you okay?" I asked. "Where are Jacob and Thalia?"

"They – stayed – back – to – fight – monsters," one girl panted, "while – we – escaped."

Oh no. Monsters? Surely Sparky had known there would be guards in the cave. I had half a mind to go down there and have a look myself, but the Hunters needed my help, so I got them on their feet and enveloped us all in a wave that I carried back toward our medical tent.

Most of the girls screamed when they laid eyes on Typhon, and I prayed he wouldn't notice us. Luckily, he didn't, because right then footsteps began to shake the ground and a second hundred-limbed creature burst onto the battlefield.

"Briares!" I heard Tyson yell, and I watched as Titan and Hundred-Hand One clashed in the middle of the battlefield. A new confidence surged in my chest. Maybe we could win this after all.

--

**Jacob's POV**

I tried to scream, but I don't know if I really did, because I was too much in shock. Thalia had sacrificed herself for me. For _me_, the guy that she barely knew. I kneeled down and examined her. Her eyes were half-closed and her breath came out in short, ragged gasps. "No," I murmured. "No, no, no, Thalia, please, don't die, you can't die, please-"

Tears spilled from my eyes, but then I felt a warty hand on my shoulder. "Do you see, son of Zeus?" the Gorgon's raspy voice purred in my ear. "Do you see what happens to those who defile us? Now you shall meet the same fate. A pity, really. You would have done well on the side of the Titans."

Fury surged through every part of my body. I had only one instinct: They killed Thalia. They have to die.

I rose, and released every last spark of lightning in my body on the two hags in the cell with me. They screamed and begged me to stop, but they soon disintegrated into yellow dust. I kept going, releasing all my energy on the piles of powder until they were black and ashy, and finally vanished altogether. Only when I had nothing left did I finally stop and fall to my knees and sob.

I examined Thalia's body again. Her eyes gently flickered open. "Thalia," I breathed, "you save my life."

She gave me a faint smile. "Of course I saved you. You're my brother."

I looked at her wound. "We've got to get you out of here," I said. "You'll be fine. Chiron will make sure of that."

But Thalia shook her head. "No, Jacob," she said. "My time here is done. Promise to take care of Seaweed Brain for me. And Annabeth too, and Rachel. She's a good girl. We got to know each other while you guys were away. She's a good match for you." Her voice was slowly fading to a whisper, and her eyes closed.

"Thalia," I said, feeling tears coming again. I settled down next to her and began to talk. "I always wanted someone who was like me. Ever since I ran away from the orphanage, I was looking for someone that had my gifts, that I could confide in. When I found the hotel…"

The words continued to pour from my mouth, even though a small voice inside me told me it did no good. I already knew that Thalia was dead.


	21. I Fight The Lord of Time to the Death

**Yeah, I know most of you don't believe it, but it's true, I really am going to finish this! For those of you who have waited patiently, I thank you with all my heart. You people who have come along in my absence, I invite you to read my story and consider yourselves lucky you didn't have the wait everyone else did.**

**I think this is the next-to-last chapter, the true climax, if you catch my drift. Enjoy!**

**Jacob's POV**

I stared at Thalia's lifeless body, blood still pouring from the wound in her chest. I sighed heavily, then wiped the tears from my eyes and scooped her up in my arms. I was about to start carrying her outside when I felt a light hand on my shoulder.

Instantly I whipped out Skysoarer and turned to face my opponent. Were there more guards in the mountain?

No. It was Artemis. Seeing her put a fresh stab of grief through my heart. How was I going to tell her?

The young girl smiled sadly at me, her eyes blurred with tears. "You made her last moments happy," she said. "Thank you."

I had been expecting something like, "You killed my lieutenant," or, "How could you let her die?"

Thalia was dead. She had died for me. I didn't know if I'd be able to live with myself, but here was her huntress, her goddess, thanking me for her death.

"I'm sorry," I said quietly. "She wasn't supposed to die, I didn't mean to…" the words died in my throat, but Artemis understood. Suddenly her body began to flicker with silver light. "Kronos will pay for this," she said in a voice that sent chills down my spine.

"Can you fight against him?" I asked. "I thought you served him now."

She slowly began to rise up in the air. "Our oath is broken," she said. "He promised me Thalia would not die." Then she glowed brighter, and I was forced to turn my head as she entered her divine form. "Take her to the tents," I heard her say. "Tell the Hunters…it's all going to be all right."

I nodded, and the next thing I knew, Artemis was gone.

I went upstairs and out the main entrance to the cave with Thalia in my arms. I picked up a wind current and flew over the battle. The armies weren't fighting anymore: they were watching a giant with a hundred hands and another with a hundred heads brawl it out in the middle of the battlefield. It was an amazing sight, and I would have been watching if my mind weren't washed with grief.

I gently descended when I got to our tents. What in the world was I going to tell Chiron? And Annabeth? And Percy? The truth, I guess, although they wouldn't forgive me.

I heard voices as I neared the medical tent. I walked inside and saw Percy, talking to Chiron while a bunch of little girls in silver jackets walked around or lay on beds. The Hunters. My heart sank.

Chiron looked up when I walked in, and his eyes went wide with shock. "Jacob?" he asked, his voice sounding very far away. "What…what has happened?"

By now I had the eyes of everyone in the tent. Percy's mother stepped out of a corner, tears welling up in her eyes. One of the Hunters screamed as they realized who the mangled body in my arms was. I brought her over to a bed and gently set her down. The Hunters gathered around her, all sobbing and holding each other.

I had to turn away. I couldn't take it. Percy was slowly backing away, his face shocked beyond belief. He lingered a moment, then he ran out of the tent. I could hear him retching somewhere outside.

I told Chiron what had happened, the whole truth, everything. When I was finished, he walked over to her bed and touched her leg. "Poor Thalia," he said. "She died disobeying. Fitting, I suppose, though it was far too soon." I could tell it was all he could do not to burst into tears.

Percy re-entered the tent, and his mother walked over and held him, crying. I waited for a moment, then I went over to him. "It's time," I said.

He looked up. "What do you…" Then his eyes cleared. "Oh." He clenched his fists. "I'm going to kill that traitor," he growled. "I'll run him through, chop him up, burn his skin, and throw his bones into the depths of Tartarus!" His eyes burned with a fury I'd never seen before. He really meant what he had said.

I nodded. "We have to find Nico," I said. "Come on."

Percy hugged his mother a final time. She sobbed more than ever, and she hugged me too, which I guess I understood, but it was still a little weird. Chiron saluted us as we exited the tent and went back to the battlefield.

The black cloak of night that had covered us for the last several hours was now slowly starting to lighten. There wasn't really much fighting going on between the sides; everyone was staring at Briares and Typhon. That fight would decide the battle.

They were an amazing sight: Typhon was spouting chunks of molten rock from his mouths at Briares, but he just as quickly batted them away with one of his hands. He held rocks in about forty of them, and he threw them at the Titan, roaring, his face one of fury. They grabbed each other and wrestled on the ground, their armies cheering behind them. It looked like a pretty fair fight, although both of them were wearing down.

We quickly found Nico, on the edge of a cliff, watching the fight, his Stygian sword covered with blood. When we told him what had happened, he just nodded sadly. His eyes were red. "I felt it," he said, "I felt her life travel down to the Underworld. I think my father's letting her into Elysium right now."

Elysium. The place for heroes. That made me feel a little better. But not much.

"We have to go now, before the fighting starts again," said Nico quickly, sheathing his sword. "Luke's waiting at the top of that mountain. Can you feel him?"

I could; a dark, evil force waiting for us at that peak. "Yes."

"Then we have to go," said Percy, but then he stopped, staring at something behind me. I turned around. Standing there was a man in a hooded sweatshirt. I suddenly realized he was the one who had given us the limo in Nashville, and the one…the one…

Suddenly my memory was flooded with forgotten images. _This _was the man who had gotten me out of that hotel. _This_ was the man who had led me toward camp. _This_ was the one who had helped me. Here he was, right here!

I heard Nico's shocked voice, somewhere far away. "You…you're the one who got me and my sister out of that hotel, all those years ago."

"Yeah," I said. "Me too."

We all stared at him, but then he reached up and gently pulled back his hood. I stood there in disbelief. I could hardly believe that the man that was standing here before me was the one who had helped us so much. _I did more to bring this quest together than you know…_

The man standing in front of us was Mr. D.

--

**Percy's POV**

I blinked in shock. The man under the hood was Mr. D.

"_You_ helped us all this time?" I said in disbelief. "It was _you_?"

"Why do you sound so disbelieving?" Mr. D scoffed, his regular old self. "Yes, of course it was me, boy. You all never would have gotten through the quest had it not been for me."

"But you would never help us do anything unless it benefited you!" Nico exclaimed.

Dionysus looked offended. "Well, I beg to differ. Who was it that got you out of that hotel, boys? Who was it that sent you to boarding school, Nico, and you to Camp Half-Blood, Jacob? Who gave you the spectacular limo that got you all the way to Kansas? Who gave you a hint about the sand dollar?" Mr. D puffed out his chest. "Yes, little ones, it was me, and don't you go forgetting it either."

"But…but gods aren't allowed to help heroes!" Jacob said. "You'll be punished if Zeus finds out!"

"I'm afraid he already has," said Mr. D gloomily, glancing up at the sky. "But that's not important right now. I have come to this enormous fiesta of bloodshed to give you one last piece of advice. I understand you're going to fight Kronos."

I was still shocked, but hey, if any god was willing to help us, I was up for it. "We're planning on it," I said.

"Then this is what I have to offer: as long as our grandfather is in that boy's body, he cannot be killed. Don't look so aghast, it's not as bad as you think. You just have to figure out how to separate the wine from the goblet. Kronos cannot rise out of Luke's body in full power until you, Percy, are dead, or you decide to join the Titans, which I strongly advise against. If you split them apart before, granddaddy will be too weak to do anything."

I shivered. The words of the Oracle rang in my head: _One must become two, or all will be lost. _"But how do we split them apart?" I asked desperately.

Mr. D winked. "That is for you to find out," he said.

I was about to protest, when suddenly I heard a great thundering crash from the mountain. I turned to see thousands and thousands of wild animals bursting out of the trees around Mount Tam and attacking Kronos's army. Deer, birds, squirrels, foxes, bears…they were everywhere.

"It seems young Artemis may get her vengeance after all," Mr. D chuckled. Then he clicked his fingers and vanished.

"What are we gonna do now?" Jacob asked.

I looked up at the mountain looming over us, imagining Luke's sneering face, daring us to come up and challenge him. I looked out over the battlefield and saw Briares fighting for his life against the hundred-headed Titan. I thought I could see Annabeth in the distance, fighting a Laistrygonian like there was no tomorrow.

"Let's go," I said.

--

Jacob picked us up off the wind and carried us towards the mountain. The entrance to it was there, waiting for us, and we charged inside without looking for any guards.

Running through the mountain was a blur. I don't remember much, except climbing up, up, up the mountain while dark thoughts brewed in my mind.

Did I truly want to challenge Kronos? Did I really think I could beat him? Wouldn't it be easier to just beg for mercy and offer to join the Titans' side? I tried to shove those thoughts out of my head. No, that wasn't what I wanted. I thought about Dionysus and Artemis, and my father with the sand dollar, and thought, _the gods may be obnoxious sometimes, but they are my family, and I like at least some of them._ Urged on with those thoughts, I surged on.

Next thing I knew, we were at the entrance to the throne room.

I stood before the two huge gold doors, and I started wondering for the first time if Kronos was just a coward and he'd made sure no one could get in there. What if it was booby trapped or something?"

Then Nico chanted in Ancient Greek, and skeletons ripped themselves up from the ground and tore the door open. I gulped. So much for that theory.

I drew my sword. Anaklusmos, who had been there right from the beginning, when I'd killed Mrs. Dodds the Fury after Mr. Brunner, a.k.a Chiron, had thrown me the sword. I grasped it in my hands, feeling the power that radiated through it. Standing there, with my only two cousins by my side, my weapon in my hands, I thought, for the first time, _I can do this._

Then, as one, the three most powerful mortals on earth charged into their grandfather's throne room.

--

Luke was waiting for us.

He was sitting on his throne, staring at us mildly, like he was annoyed we had walked in uninvited or something. He looked like a spoiled prince, in his golden armor and flowing black cape, and I felt rage burn through me.

Luke rose from the throne, casually picking up his scythe from its place next to him, and said, "The three sons of the Big Three. This is truly how it will end. You were foolish coming here. It's a shame, you were the only hope for the rest of the world. Now, after I have killed you, Typhon and all the Titans will be at my command, as will your precious army." He sneered. "I will order them to rage through the earth, destroying cities, countries, anything in their path. Then I shall forge a great new order, and build cities the likes of which your kind has never seen, and the Golden Ages shall truly begin again!" His half-Luke half-Kronos voice rang through the chamber.

I raised my sword. "Don't count on it," I said.

Luke smile slowly faded into a sneer. "So, still you continue to defy me, after everything is lost. It shall be a fitting end for you. And I'll begin with the one whose father started it all!" He suddenly swung his scythe at Jacob, cackling madly. Dark energy burst from the blade toward him.

Jacob countered at the last second, throwing up his hand and sending a blast of lightning at the attack. The two assaults collided in midair, causing a small explosion that rocked the entire room. Falling debris cascaded from the ceiling, and a whirlwind of smoke swirled around Jacob's legs, but he himself was unhurt. Kronos jumped off of his throne and charged at us, sending huge bursts of black power from his hands and the blade of his scythe.

If Nico hadn't been there, we would have been killed instantly. He made a complicated movement with his hands, and slabs of earth from the floor rose up and made a makeshift tent around us. As the attack hit it, the rocks crumbled around us, but it saved us from being fried. We spread around Luke then, forming a rough circle around him and sending all the attacks we had.

It was as if Luke had become Argus; he seemed to have eyes all around his head. Whenever one of us attacked, he was there to counter, spinning his scythe to avoid our swords and conjuring up shields of his evil power to counter the blasts of water, lightning, and earth that we rained down on him. In return, he swung his scythe madly, first in confidence and then in frustration as all his attacks seemed to miss our skin by a hair's breadth. You could call it dumb luck, but something told me that someone was rooting for us up on a mountain peak back in New York.

Finally, I abandoned my power all together and went for the direct attack. Using my sea powers were too tiring, and my muscles were aching. I ducked under the Titan's scythe-swipe and thrust at him with my sword. Luke juked to the left and blocked a lightning bolt from Jacob with his scythe. I rapidly attacked again, and this time, thought he dodged, I landed a good slice in his right shoulder.

The howl of pain that came from the mouth of Luke was almost unbearable. He stepped back, blood that was half-red and half-gold flowing from the gash in his shoulder. He glared at me menacingly, and I watched in shock as the gash suddenly began to heal. It looked like someone was pulling the skin together with an invisible zipper. Within seconds, where the scar had been was nothing but a tear in Luke's armor.

He smiled fiendishly. "That's the thing about your human bodies. They're so easy to mend." Then he was coming at me again, harder than ever.

After that I can't tell you much about the battle, because it was like my memory was malfunctioning; everything was being seen in shreds. I had a driving instinct the entire time to keep moving, keep dodging, and keep swinging Riptide with all my might. Without my Amazonian speed and reflexes, I probably would have been diced much earlier. As it was, I was barely holding on, my strength waning and my sword growing heavier in my hands.

I caught glimpses of Jacob and Nico, always there to block a strike if I hadn't raised my sword in time, and swiping their weapons at Luke like it was all they'd ever wanted to do in their lives. If I'd had time, I would have told them that they were the best friends I could ever ask for, because they didn't have to do this for me, they weren't the ones with a prophecy hanging over their heads. I would have told them what to tell Annabeth and Tyson and Grover and my mom and Paul and all everyone else when I didn't come back.

Because that was the realization I was slowly coming to as I fought Kronos: I was going to die. I could already feel it, the blackness tickling the edges of my senses, pleading with me to just give up, to come into the blackness and never have to feel pain again. It was so tempting, just to give up and tell Luke that he wins. You have no idea how many times I almost did just that.

But every time, something deep within me told me to keep driving, to keep fighting, not to stop and think about what might be, only looking forward. It was like my conscience had become a football coach.

The beginning of the end began when Jacob died for the second time.

It was right after Luke had delivered a blow to his sword, a real bone-rattler. The clash of steel against bronze rang through the chamber, and Jacob went stumbling back, almost losing the grip on his sword.

I don't know how Luke recovered that fast. Maybe his Titan powers also gave him superhuman reflexes. All I know is that Nico and I weren't close enough to cover for him, and there was nothing to stop the blade of Kronos as it sliced through Jacob's exposed chest.

Time seemed to stop in its tracks. Maybe it did. I heard a voice screaming and realized it was my own. I watched helplessly as Jacob's eyes widened in shock. He fell to his knees, his sword clattering to the ground. There was no mark where the scythe had hit him. He looked at me and his mouth seemed to be trying to form words. Then he gasped and a sort of peace entered his features.

I heard a terrible ripping noise, and I saw a silvery light begin to pour from between Jacob's shoulder blades. I didn't need an explanation from Nico to know that this was Jacob's soul being ripped from his body. I would have done something if I could, but I was forced to watch as the light began to be pulled down towards the ground, back into the Underworld.

_I am sorry, Zeus,_ I thought. _Both of your children have died tonight because of me._

Then Nico was there, raising his ringed fist and crying out something in a strange language. I saw the soul struggle for a moment, then it changed direction and began to come towards him. Kronos and I watched, me in shock and him in annoyance, as the soul was sucked into Nico's skull-shaped ring, which glowed for a moment and then returned to normal.

Luke shook his head. "You're a fool, Nico di Angelo," he said. "Have you denied your friend Elysium once again? Very well, that is no problem of mine."

I stared at Luke with such unbridled fury that for a moment I saw fear pass across his features. I raised my sword but he held up his hand. "Percy," he said, "I think it's time you and I finished this once and for all!"

Then I suddenly had the feeling of moving up rapidly, and the features around me changed. Suddenly Luke and I were outside, in the night air. The first thing I realized was that we were very high up. The sky was pale pink as dawn approached, and I could see the battlefield below. I saw Typhon and Briares brawling it out and all the other soldiers watching. Then I looked under my feet and almost passed out.

The peak of Mount Tam had been ripped off. Kronos and I were on what now looked like the opening of a volcano, standing on some kind of invisible floor. Except that I recognized what it opened into, that massive black hole like a wide gaping mouth, the place that had haunted me in my dreams for the last four years.

Tartarus.

Oh, Hades.

Luke spun his scythe between his fingers, looking as relaxed as if he hadn't been fighting at all. "Well, Percy?" he asked. "What do you think? Isn't it fitting, for the half-blood of the prophecy and the Titan Lord encased in the traitor's body to have their final stand on top of the one place that the loser will be doomed to? The loser being you, of course." He smiled. "Out here, for all of Olympus to see, and your friends, too, look."

I did look, and I saw everyone's attention turn from Typhon-Briares and look up to the shattered mountain peak. I saw Annabeth, her ponytail having broken and her blonde hair cascading over her shoulders. Tears rolled down her cheeks. I wanted to tell her not to cry, that she shouldn't be sad that I was going. There were so many things I wanted to tell her, so many things I wanted to talk about…but I couldn't, my football coach of a conscience told me. Keep looking forward. Don't look back.

I saw Tyson, and Grover, and Rachel, and Paul, and Beckendorf, and dozens of other people who had come to mean so much to me over the years. And suddenly I thought, _I'm doing this for you. All of you. All of the world._

Then I looked up at the sky and thought, _I'm doing it for you, too._

I stood weakly, raised Riptide. Luke chuckled. "You will still fight? I thought it would be so. Very well, then. Feel, Perseus Jackson, the might of the Lord of Time!" He raised his hand.

I wasn't conscious of the blast that fired. Somehow my senses seemed to have shut off completely. I couldn't even see it coming. I felt something cold and dark slam into my chest. I flew back almost to the edge of the invisible platform. Riptide clattered from my hands. I knew the sword would return to me in a moment, but it was no use. It was over. My head swam. I felt blood pouring from the wound in my chest. The blackness closed in, hungrily absorbing me.

I heard Luke's voice like it was from across a football field. "Ah, happy birthday, Percy. Surely you hadn't forgotten? Today's the big day! Both of the prophecies – the one from your quest and the one that was made before you were born – will come true on this day. And now _I_ shall fulfill them, when I defeat the great son of the sea god and take my victory on Mount Olympus. Victory is sweet, Percy. Sweet indeed."

He raised his hand once more. I closed my eyes, allowing darkness to overtake me. _I am sorry, _was my last thought as my

But then something was wrong. The darkness was retreating, and in its place, a deep, powerful light was flooding my vision. Suddenly the pain in my chest seemed to fade a little, and I felt calmer and less afraid. I opened my eyes.

Standing around me were the glimmering shapes of people. People whom I all knew. They were all standing around me, shielding me from Kronos as they spoke to me. It was the gods.

"Percy Jackson, do not lose heart! We are still with you!" said the mighty Zeus, his eyes glowing with fiery passion.

I was amazed. All around me the gods stood, shouting their encouragement. Some were missing of course: Hera was one. Hades, another. But most everyone else was there.

"Come on, boy, you can't give up that easily!" Haphaestus shouted, grinning.

"Honestly, punk, didn't I teach you anything?" Ares said with a smirk.

"Do it for love, Percy!" Aphrodite cried, eyes glittering with tears.

"Take it easy, kid, you can do this!" Apollo said with a dazzling smile.

"He is right, Percy," Athena told me, looking into my eyes with her gray ones. "You can."

A particular god stepped forward. Tan wrinkly skin, bright green eyes, and a black beard.

"Dad," I said, getting choked up.

He clapped me on the shoulder. "Yes, my son. Know now that you must not give up on yourself, for we, the gods, do not. Even in the face of adversity, you must fight Kronos, for you can defeat him, Percy. I know you can."

"How?" I asked desperately. "How do you know?"

Then my dad did something he had never done before and I had never in a million years expected him to do. He wrapped his arms around me in a tight, fatherly hug. "Because you are my son," he told me, sobbing. I smelled the ocean in his clothes, trying to hold back my own tears.

He stepped back, raised his hand. Dionysus, who I had not noticed before, winked at me and clicked his fingers. Wine goblets appeared in all the gods' hands. "To Percy!" Poseidon said, glowing with pride.

"To Percy!" the rest of the gods echoed, staring at me with encouraging faces.

The gods of Olympus. Making a toast to me. Now there's something you don't see every day.

Then suddenly, they were gone, and I was back above Mount Tam and Tartarus, lying on the ground where Luke's attack had taken me. Only the pain was only a dull throb, and the blackness no longer clouded my vision. I was alive.

I stood. Luke was staring at me in shock. "What – what just happened?" he said, in just Luke's voice now, a voice filled with fear.

I stared at him. "My beginning," I said, raising Riptide once more. "And your end."

Then I was on top of him, coming at him from every angle I could muster. I was strong now, and he was weak. Now _I_ was the one with confidence, but I had more than just confidence. I had hope. I had something true to fight for.

Still, Luke held on. He blocked my strikes, throwing in some of his own, but I knocked those aside easily. But every time I struck him, the wounds healed back instantly. If I could just separate him from that scythe…

Suddenly, an idea came to me that was so insane I almost laughed out loud as I thought it. I paused from fighting and glanced up at the sky again as if to say, _Really? You want it to end like that?_

Would it work? I wasn't sure. But it was worth trying.

It happened when Luke and I had come to a temporary standstill, and he was trying to figure out his next move. I looked him straight in the eyes. I saw the old Luke there now, just as I had on my first day at Camp Half-Blood. Then I made my move.

Luke wrenched his sword away from my and struck. My blade hit the base of Luke's staff and I twisted, putting my whole weight into a downward thrust, just as Luke had showed me the first time we had ever fought, at that first sword training at Camp Half-Blood. Except this time, I flicked my sword up at the last second, so that the scythe went up in the air. I reached up and caught it, then looked at Luke, who was staring at me, shocked.

"Yeah," I told him. "I learned from the best."

Then, as the sun rose over the horizon on my sixteenth birthday, I took the scythe of Kronos in my hands and swung it across Luke's chest. I watched as he stumbled back and his body split just as Jacob's had, only his features seemed to split, like someone was tearing him in half. The part that was still him toppled to the invisible ground, unconscious or dead, I didn't know. The other part, which was now a bald, tan man with bright yellow eyes, fell and slowly began to fall into the pit of blackness. He fell as if in slow motion, yet somehow he managed to grab the tip of my shoe. He looked up at me pleadingly. "Please…" he gasped.

"Get lost," I said, and kicked my shoe, sending him toppling into Tartarus with a scream of anguish. Then the black swallowed him up and he was gone.

I turned away. He was gone. That was all that mattered now.

I looked down at the battlefield. Typhon had stopped fighting and was looking and was looking at his skin, which was beginning to crack. He let out a final roar, then suddenly light flooded from him and he exploded. Showers of sparks rained down on the blood-soaked field. The Titan's army took about three seconds to take it all in, then they turned tail and fled, screaming like little children. I heard a massive wave of cheers erupt from the gods' side and then Chiron shout, "After them!"

Suddenly a weariness flooded over me like a wave. I swayed where I stood, wanting nothing more than to sleep. It was hard to tell, because my eyes were already closing, but I thought I saw Poseidon standing across from me, smiling warmly.

"You did it," he said.

"For you," I replied, smiling back.

Then I dropped to the ground and passed out.


End file.
